Just a Friend
by AsuraHeterodyne
Summary: A party is to be thrown in Ladybug and Chat Noir's honor, and only the most rich and fashionable will be attending. Meanwhile, Chat Noir discovers the depth of Marinette's friendship.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's note:**

 **This is the literary equivalent of a doodle, I don't have any plans for it. I could reconsider if anyone wants me to but... meh.**

 **This was actually born because I was researching Fashion Week for The True Agreste and one of the places was Milan. I kept hearing "Milan darling, Milan" over and over like a song lyric stuck in my head. So yeah. There is an Incredibles reference in here.**

 **How the frack did I kinda-sorta make a MariChat? I like Ladrien much better, but I suppose all the good stuff happens in MariChat anyway... *sigh***

 **I own nothing.**

Chat Noir and Ladybug stood in front of the small woman. She gestured to a picture of Adrien wearing her design on the wall,

"Supermodels! Hah!" she swung her arms, animatedly expressing her distaste. "Nothing super about them; spoiled, stupid little stick figures with poufy lips who think only of themselves! Fah!" Her grating voice and vaguely European accent changed from dismissive to power-hungry awe,

"I will now design for GODS!" Adrien could barely contain his laughter, oh the irony! This so-called 'spoiled stick figure' was one of the very same 'gods' that she was so excited to design for. Ladybug however was shaking with suppressed outrage.

"See here, the red-clad hero leaned down and poked the tiny giant of the fashion world in the chest, "I know that 'stupid stick figure' and happen to be good friends with him!" This was news to Adrien, so far as _he_ knew he had only spoken to Ladybug a few times as Adrien. It was rather strange (and exhilarating) that she would consider them 'good friends' when he was out of costume.

"He is kind, selfless, and smart. If you want us to commission you, then you need to pull your head out of your ass right now!" Chat stared slack-jawed at Ladybug. She had no clue she felt so strongly about his civilian self. Edna seemed taken aback at the heroine's sudden outburst, but rallied quickly.

"I am the foremost fashion designer in my field, and I will not be spoken to this way darling. I do not need you, if you can find another designer who will be half as good as I, then you can go right ahead." Chat recovered enough to say,

"I know someone who would be excellent for the job, she is an intern at the Gabriel fashion company. Her name is Marinette Dupain-Chang. Unless I'm wrong, she would be eager for the task, and would make designs that would give even your considerable talent a run for its money." This time, it was Ladybugs turn to stare in shock. Chat missed it however, and addressed Ladybug without taking his eyes off the tiny fuming designer.

"Do you agree M'lady?" Ladybug shook herself and muttered a quick affirmation. They left Edna in her cavernous living room and escaped to the roof.

"Well, we burned that bridge. How do we even know that Marinette will do it? I'm so stupid!" Chat facepalmed.

"I know that she would be thrilled to take the job, I wonder why I didn't think of it sooner." Ladybug giggled nervously. Chat falsely assumed she felt guilty about telling the woman off. He patted her on the shoulder.

"It's okay, that lady probably needed a kick in the butt anyway." She had never even met him as Adrien. Sure, most models were like that, but maybe she should've actually met him before she insulted him. "If you'd like, I can talk to Marinette for you so you can cool off."

Marinette bristled with nervousness. How was she supposed to design formalwear for herself and Chat? She kicked herself for insulting Mme. Mode.

"Hey, go home and relax okay? I'll take care of it!" With that he took off in the direction of her house. Ladybug panicked for a second and then gathered her wits. She would drop herself off and transform behind the bakery. Nobody, including a curious cat, would see her behind the dumpster of the bakery.

*MLMLML*

Marinette slipped into her room. Mari didn't have to fake the alarmed squeak when she heard a knock on her balcony door. Her nerves were frayed from their meeting with Mme. Mode, and rushing home. She opened the trapdoor and found a super hero trying to be nonchalant.

"Chat? What are you doing here?" Marinette inwardly cringed at her terrible acting skills.

"Can I come in? I need to ask you something." Chat grinned, he relished the o _purr_ tunity to give her the chance of a lifetime.

" Sure, kitty. Jump down. " Chat landed lightly on a pink comforter. With it, was a giant cat pillow.

"You sleeping with another cat? I thought I was the heartthrob of Paris!" Chat said, nudging Marinette playfully.

"Marinette? Come here a moment, I'm sure you'll like this!" Sabine called.

"Be right there Maman!" She yelled. " Alright kitty, no scratching up my furniture while I'm gone. I'll be right back." she said as she scurried down her stairs toward the trapdoor that marked the edge of her domain.

Sabine had apparently wanted to show the press release of the Gala held in Ladybug and Chat Noirs honor. Marinette tried to act suitably surprised about the announcement, and excited that she would get to see so much raw fashion talent at the ball. She would be excited except that she would have to _make_ one of the fashion masterpieces. Ugh, she was going to die of exhaustion!

When Marinette returned, she found Chat Noir looking at one of the many pictures of Adrien that she had on her wall.

"So, do you like the Fashion, or the model?" the cat grinned playfully.

"Shut up Cat! What are you doing looking at my pictures?" She barely remembered to tack on the last in her embarrassed and fuming state.

"You didn't say I couldn't look around!" Chat's eyes gleamed with puckish glee. "It's the _model_ eh? Very pretty." He picked at his claws in a gesture of feigned nonchalance. " Kinda bland though, he seems like a meringue: pretty on the outside, nothing but air within. What do you see in him anyway?" Chat said somewhat curiously.

"If you only came here to insult Adrian, then you can get out! I don't care if you're some hotshot hero!" Marinette had two people insult Adrien now. She was not very patient at the moment.

"Calm down, calm down, I was just teasing you. Besides, I came here for a commission." She looked at him blankly, switching gears. Yes, the designs, right. Chat explained,

"Ladybug and I would like you to design formal wear for us so that we may attend the party in our honor. If you'd like, I could ask them to invite you as well. I could pay you handsomely for it, and I know you will do a fantastic job!" Marinette tried to look grateful for the 'honor' that Chat was giving her. He didn't know that she had specifically not mentioned herself because she knew that she would stress forever over the designs and would probably pull an all-nighter or two just before the celebration.

"Oh my goodness! What an _honor_!" She said in her best star-struck voice.

" If it's alright with you, I would like to oversee the creation of our attire." Chat asked sheepishly.

She wanted to kick him to the curb and just do it, but she looked into his big, round, kitty-cat eyes and she just couldn't make herself say no.

"Fine! On one condition," He perked up noticeably. "you can't tell anyone about my crush."

Chat smirked slyly,

"Cats honor!"

*MLMLML*

"So… why _do_ you like about Mr. Prince Meringue?" A week later Chat tried to say it as gently as possible, so as not to ruffle any more feathers. It was his second night here watching her work, and while he enjoyed watching her, he really needed to get this niggle out of his mind.

"Do you want the real answer or the least embarrassing one?" Marinette said, her head was bent farther over her sewing machine than she really needed to. She was hiding a blush no doubt.

"Lets start with least embarrassing and work our way out from there." He said, hiding his curiosity.

"Well, the least embarrassing thing is that he is rich, and famous, and he has big gorgeous green eyes. Just the reasons why everyone else likes him, and my crush goes no further than that." Her eyes rolled and her lips curled with mild distaste.

"Okay, so what's the real reason?" Chat was starting to become embarrassed that he had asked, and felt awkward in light of her reply so far. He soldiered on, the saying about curiosity and cats flashing though his mind.

"Well, at first I hated him. I thought that he was a crony of the class bully. Then he apologized and explained what had happened. He talked about how he hadn't really had any friends and that he was trying his best. What really got me was the kindness in his eyes, and his utter willingness to be friends after I had jumped to the wrong conclusions. During those first few months of infatuation, it was mostly to do with his looks, and a little to do with his personality" Adrien felt a burning in his throat, like he wanted to cry. Why would he have such a strong reaction to her words?

"But then I started to become more comfortable around him, and now I have a million reasons. Its because of the way he laughs, and the way that hope and friendship lights up his face, and because he is so willing to help others, he is really smart, he is a team player, and he wants to be the best but doesn't begrudge anyone their higher skill." Mari sighed a little. Chat was overwhelmed, he didn't know what to say, but she continued.

"You know, as much as I like him… I wish I didn't" Chat was taken aback.

"Why?" he said incredulously.

"Because he doesn't need a girlfriend. He needs a friend. I feel like my feelings are getting in the way of that, and that's not fair to him. I wish I could just turn my emotions off so I could actually be there for him. Help him out with life y'know?" Chat was touched that Marinette felt so strongly about him, and that she wanted to keep his best interests at heart despite what she felt. A warmth spread through him.

"He's got it rough. He is expected to be perfect at everything. His dad wears him too thin and Adrien just does it all without complaint. I think that his dad isn't so great at showing his love for him, I don't know if there is anything nefarious going on or if Gabriel is just a busy man, but I know that Adrien isn't getting the love and support that he needs. I think that Nino is doing his best to be a brother to him, but Alya and I can't really be his sisters while I am stuttering like an idiot!" her head landed on the desk and she started to smack her head against it in frustration.

Wow, was he really that easy to read? Yikes, she suspected his father of abuse. Gabriel had been cross of course, and he wasn't a very attentive father, but wow.

He turned his attention back on the girl who was still trying to beat the romance out of herself.

"You should spend more time with him." Chat said.

"WHAT?" Marinette spun to look at him, aghast.

"Erm… yeah. You could invite him over for videogames or food or movies or something. Not as a date, but as a friend. If you got used to being around him in a non-romantic mindset, maybe your romantic feelings will go away?" Chat felt sad for some reason, like he wanted her to have a crush on him. He didn't know why he felt like this, he loved ladybug, and while Marinette was adorable and kind, she wasn't Ladybug.

"How would I do that? I can't even talk to him! I stutter!" Marinette looked terrified.

"Okay, so how about you practice with me?" Chat asked, a mischievous smile playing across his lips. He grabbed a picture of himself from the desk and put it up in front of his face like a mask. The irony of the situation was not lost on the cat.

"Hi Marinette! I am Adrien, gorgeous model and sweetheart of Paris! What can my 'big gorgeous green eyes' do for you today?" Chat said it in a falsetto and a comically cheery tone, making his pretend civilian-self sound like a drag-queen.

Marinette laughed. Chat never heard a more beautiful sound.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's note:**

 **You folks asked for more, so here is more.**

 **I have no clue what is happening nor what is going to happen with this one. Seriously, I am making this up as I go along. You can give me suggestions for this fic if you like, email or PM me with ideas and I might just run with it.**

 **Be sure to check out The True Agreste, that one is my baby.**

 **I own nothing.**

Adrien's eyes seemed drawn toward Marinette today.

He found relief in Mme. Bustier's class where he had the good fortune to sit _in front_ of the twin-tailed designer. He could finally focus.

Why on earth was he so hypersensitive to Marinette? He had already known that she had a crush on him for a week. He was actually somewhat used to interacting with hordes of infatuated girls that he felt no romantic feeling toward. Being on the front of fashion magazines had its consequences. The key was to stay friendly and to de-escalate anything that might be considered 'romantic'.

So it wasn't the fact that she liked him. That was old hat.

Nor was it the fact that she was cute, and she was _very_ cute. For heaven's sake, she looked like a porcelain doll. Except there was a dragon behind her pink kissable lips and bright blue eyes. He had experience with supermodels that were supposed to be the most attractive in the world (both male and female) and he would like to think that looks didn't faze him at all.

He didn't think that his hypersensitivity was her abundant skill. She was the best gamer he had ever seen, and he knew that she had designed Jagged Stone's signature sunglasses and his newest hit album cover. She was also one of the most talented designers he had seen, but was as yet undiscovered in the greater fashion world.

No, the thing that was really novel about this was that she liked him enough to not want anything from him. That was weird. In all of his time there were very few people that didn't want something from him. He figured that the reason for his recent wandering attention was because of this fact.

*MLMLML*

"Hey Marinette, do you need a hand?" Adrien interrupted the clearly frazzled Marinette who was mumbling into her homework. The table she occupied was a sprawling mess of papers, books, and even her school tablet.

"Ugh-FWAAAAH!" Marinette flailed wildly, papers fluttering like ruffled feathers. Adrien could swear that he saw her pigtails fluff in alarm. Adrien caught her before she fell out of the seat.

The effect of his touch was immediate. She froze as if she had been turned to stone. She slowly looked up at Adrien. When Marinette started going from pink to red, Adrien figured out that he was practically nose to nose with her, and was hugging her to his chest. How did that happen?

He felt a bit hot in the face for making her uncomfortable, and gently released her.

"That's the physics homework, right?" Adrien asked, his hand rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment.

"Y-Yeah, its uh- fluid dynamics." Adrien knew this, he was in her class and fluid dynamics was what they had been lectured on for the past three days. He gave her a pass though, as he knew it was hard to talk to someone they like; goodness knows he felt that way around Ladybug.

"Lemme guess, its the problem about water in the funny shaped pipe, right?" She nodded. "I had problems with Bournoli's Principle too. Let me help you." He sat down next to her.

Within a few minutes, he found that she didn't have any problems with the math, she was just trying to figure out _why it worked_.

"You are weird," he saw her expression and quickly explained, "-that's not a bad thing! I just meant that most folks have problems figuring out the math and don't bother to wonder why it works." Marinette seemed to relax, and Adrien with her.

Twenty minutes later, and both Marinette and Adrien were working away at their homework. Adrien found that Marinette had excellent questions that had never occurred to Adrien, and he found that his understanding was all the better for it. Besides, once she got over the initial shock of Adrien's unexpected arrival, Marinette was fun to be around (a fact which his time as Chat had already confirmed).

"You know, we should study together more often. I'm usually available on Tuesdays and Thursdays after school… if you want?" Adrien was dismayed to see that Marinette seemed to revert back to her default awkwardness as he said this.

"YEAH! Er… I mean, uh- sure, I don't have anything to do, so I could do you! Wait- that came out wrong! What I didn't mean do you like _do you_ but like spend time with you. Studying. And stuff." She trailed off, her face was glued in a rictus of embarrassment.

"Great, so we will meet in the library on Tuesdays and Thursdays?" Adrien said, attempting to keep the awkwardness off his own face.

"Sure." Adrien caught the dreamy sigh as he walked away.

*MLMLML*

"So now we are going to meet in the library on Tuesdays and Thursdays!" Marinette let out a squeal of excitement that Chat mistook as a screech of pain. He surged over to her and checked to make sure she hadn't sewn her hand into the hem of Ladybug's skirt.

Marinette planted a hand in the curious kitty's face and pushed.

"I'm sorry kitty, I'm just excited that's all!" A Cheshire grin spread across the cat's face.

"So much excitement for your _friend_. You sure don't seem to be seeing him in any less of a romantic light" If Chat's smirk was any wider his face would split in two.

"Yes, yes I'm _trying_! But as you said, I need to interact with him in non-romantic settings. Is there anything less romantic than _physics?_ " Chat's eyebrow quirked. There was a new twinkle in his eye, one that Ladybug had seen countless times. Marinette knew what was coming.

"I don't know about you but every time I see someone reading a physics book they say 'screw this'" Chat looked very pleased with himself as he let the joke fall from his lips.

"No." Marinette was so done.

"I don't know, there's a certain attraction to it… Gravitational attraction" Chat brought his face close to hers, and Marinette unceremoniously pushed it away.

"Stop." Marinette got enough of this when she was Ladybug.

Chat picked up the picture of Adrien.

"Hey are you a singularity? Not only are you attractive, but the closer I get to you, the faster time seems to slip by." He used his unflattering 'Adrien voice' again. Had he ever even met the guy?

"Why me?" Ugh.

"Because I think I've discovered my supersymmetric partner" Chat let the picture fall and winked.

To his credit, he kept a straight face for a good five seconds after that stupid wink of his.

Chat couldn't keep his laughter in any longer, and burst into guffaws. Marinette had tried to cover up her amusement by pretending to be exasperated. After a moment, her façade broke too, and they both devolved into peels of laugher.


	3. Chapter 3

**Authors note:**

 **Please tell me why y'all like this fic so I can keep it up. I feel like I'm gonna ruin it for you guys. Maybe I already have. I dunno, you tell me.**

 **Also, how is this thing so sickeningly fluffy? I need to put myself in time out.**

 **I own nothing**

"Alright, I think we need a break. Do you want some tea? There's a shop down the street." Adrien stood up and stretched, feeling the motion from toes to fingertips. Marinette and Adrien had been studying and doing homework for several hours, and as much as he enjoyed Physics, even _he_ had limits.

"Sure" Marinette said, her eyes averted from Adrien's stretch. Adrien was so proud of her. She was fast losing her stutter, and was beginning to joke with him as Adrien. She was doing her best to think of him as a friend and Adrien could see that.

As they walked the block that would take them to the coffee shop, they passed a promo poster for a news station.

"So, you gonna watch the event?" the ball was three days away, and all of Paris was abuzz with anticipation for the party in Ladybug and Chat's honor.

"Uh, Erm… yeah. I'm probably going to watch with my parents. I-I'm really looking forward to seeing the designs that everyone will be wearing!" She smiled awkwardly. Adrien figured that Marinette was uncomfortable keeping the fact that she had designed and made the clothes for the most high profile of the guests there as secret. Or perhaps her nervousness stemmed from the fact that her work would be scrutinized by every eye in Paris.

"Yeah, hopefully the party will inspire you to make more fantastic designs!" Adrien said.

"I- uh.. yeah! Sure thing! Erm… Thanks!" She blushed scarlet.

Adrien was surprised to find his eyes glued to hers. They were a bright sky blue, and looked at him with respect and warmth as well as embarrassment. She looked away, her eyelashes sweeping her cheeks. Her freckles stood out against her cute nose, and Adrien felt like he wanted to count them all.

"…Adrien? Are you okay?" Adrien started. He hadn't realized that she had spoken.

"Uh, w-what did you say?" What the heck was happening?

"I asked if you were going to the party." She said, still embarrassed.

"I dunno, my dad wants me to, but I know I'm just going to be used as a billboard again. Chloe is also most likely going to try to kiss me in front of some cameras, so I think that it would be better to not go. I think that I could say that I am behind on my Chinese, or if that doesn't work I think I have some Ipecac somewhere so that I can be 'sick'."

Adrien didn't look at Marinette. He could feel sympathy radiate from her in waves. He felt bad for lying to her, of course he would be there, but that was Chat, not Adrien. Besides, the second part was true. He really would try to get out of the event as Adrien.

"You could meet Paris' superheroes though! They are really great in person. I'm sure that Ladybug at least will make sure that Chloe stays off of you!" Adrien turned and was surprised to find a fierce protectiveness in her gaze. It almost reminded him of Ladybug.

"Mari, its okay! I don't really like those things anyway, I'm not a particularly outgoing person." He rubbed his neck awkwardly.

Marinette gaped and sputtered. Uh oh. Had he said something stupid? He mentally reviewed his last sentence and found what he thought was the error. He turned red.

"Oh, uh... sorry for calling you 'Mari'... I guess you don't like that huh?"

"B-but why?" Marinette stuttered gesticulating wildly.

Adrien was confused "Erm... because you don't seem to like-"

"Wait- what? You said you are 'not a particularly outgoing person'? You are kind, smart, and caring! What makes you think you aren't outgoing?" Marinette seemed genuinely confused about this seemingly simple concept. At least she didn't seem mad about the name foux-pas.

He looked straight ahead, avoiding looking at her. It would be easier to say this if he didn't look at her.

"Well, I don't really like crowds or people very much. They are draining and I prefer to be around a handful of people at a time. Besides, I'm not the most popular person. Sure the fame and fortune make me 'popular' with fans and things but unlike you my personality is kind of...blah" He smiled a bit at memories of her late-night singing breaks with Chat Noir where they belted out the lyrics half-remembered and thoroughly off-key. He had never done things like that, but then again, he was also not as... confidant as her.

"I enjoy people's company, in fact I can't get enough of hanging out with friends- but a crowd of snooty strangers is not my idea of a good time." This was all true, but if Chat Noir didn't have to go, then he probably would have gone just to please his father... but Marinette couldn't know that.

Here came the hard part.

"I haven't had a lot of friends in my life, and as much popularity as I get for being famous, people don't actually like _me._ They like the pretty face or the fancy clothes or the money." He made a face, remembering all of the unsavory propositions that he had received-though he was only fifteen. "I am kind of awkward and shy which makes it hard to make friends. I think it was all those years of homeschooling..." All those years shut-up in his house like a princess locked away in a tower.

He forced his mind back to the present.

"As for your compliments, I thank you dearly- but none of those things have any bearing on the situations that I feel comfortable in, which happen to be small groups of friends. Our study sessions for example are really enjoyable, especially with someone so creative, funny, and interesting as you." He finally looked at her.

Her big blue eyes stared at him. He wasn't the best at reading other people's emotions, but he thought he saw sympathy, admiration, and friendship. It was so open, and it took him off guard. He had half expected her to reject him because he wasn't the perfect princeling that everyone wanted him to be. He was just him, as much as he tried to be better.

"You can call me Mari, you know."

"Huh?"

"Earlier... you called me Mari... you can call me that if you like." She smiled.

"Alright Mari, lets get our Tea."

*MLMLML*

They exited the Café, unadulterated Earl Grey for Adrien, and Coffee with a disturbing amount of add-ons for Mari.

"Coffee Mari? Coffee? What kind of unsophisticated ruffian drinks Coffee? I feel so betrayed!" Adrien said, his voice dripping with irony.

"So does this mean we are enemies or something?" Mari asked, hand on cocked hip, sass coming off her in waves. Adrien loved seeing this side of her, which she normally only saved for his leather-clad alter-ego.

"But we _are_ enemies! I come from the house of Montague the Tea-Drinkers, and you the house of Capulet the Coffee-Drinkers." Adrien swung an invisible sword at Marinette who merely giggled at Adrien's silliness.

"What? So you are Romeo? Where is your Rosaline? Go find her, for you will not have this Juliet!" Holy crap. This girl actually read Shakespeare. Not only read it, but remembered things about it!

Adrien faced a poster that they passed by with a full sized picture of Ladybug on it. He pretended to try to kiss it, only to be slapped away by an imaginary hand.

"But she hath forsworn to love, and in that vow do I live dead that live to tell it now!" Adrien placed a hand over his heart as if he had been stabbed there. Marinette giggled.

"Thus I have gone to sup at the house of Capulet-" he gestured to his drink "and found a maiden who, while most fair, is a Capulet coffee drinker, of which I cannot abide."

"You forgot that neither knew the other's surname when they met." She said, a teasing smile pulling at her lips.

"Ah, yes! So for the moment I will forget thy name!" grabbed her hand "If I profane with my worthiest hand this holy shrine, My lips two blushing pilgrims ready stand to smooth that rough touch with a tender kiss." In a stupidly Chat-like move, Adrien kissed her hand and gave her a lascivious grin. Adrien immediately regretted it, but had done it without thinking.

Marinette pushed him away from her hand with one finger on his nose, reminding Adrien momentarily of Ladybug.

Mari seemed to realize what she had just done, and apologized profusely. Then she seemed to realize what had just happened and her words cut off entirely.

 _Whoops. I think I just broke Marinette._

*MLMLML*

Chat flew through the night air. He always reveled in the power and control that the suit brought him, physically at least, though what he really loved about the suit was still ahead of him.

When he had first met Plagg and started fighting, what had motivated him was a sense of freedom and an almost instinctual need to help those around him. Quickly afterwards those feelings, while still just as potent as before, were dimmed by comparison to his new reason to fight every day.

Ladybug.

She was lounging on one of the pyramidal roofs of the Notre Dame. Chat felt a wave of warmth and comfort overtake him. He needed this, time with his Lady. She loved him, even if it was only as a friend. She also accepted him… the real _him_ , the one that one that he could only ever show as Chat. He loved her, unconditionally and in every way.

But…

But after today, Chat couldn't deny that what he felt for Marinette was more than just a friendship. He had been trying to process that fact, but kept running into the brick wall that was his feelings for Ladybug. If he had a well of feelings for Marinette, then Chat had an entire lake of feelings for Ladybug. Feelings, however unreciprocated seemed to grow with time, and he had liked Ladybug a lot longer than he had liked Marinette.

He had been looking forward to seeing Ladybug, he hoped that his feelings for her would swell over him and wash away his confusion. He would be soothed in the balm of her presence, and this uncomfortable emotional weirdness would simply go away.

He finally reached the roof where Ladybug was sitting. She straightened when she heard Chat's arrival.

"Good evening, My Lady" Chat kissed her hand "What brings you to shine down on Paris this evening? Are you trying to make the moon jealous?" To his surprise, instead of Ladybug's typical unflappable rebuff, he received a blush.

"Uh, I was just out for a walk." She squeaked. She cleared her throat and continued, regaining her composure "now that you are here, lets make sure that Paris is safe."

"Are you okay? Are you sick Milady?" Chat searched for any further evidence of illness, even going so far as to put his hand on her forehead before remembering that his hands were gloved.

"No no, I'm fine, we just need to get going is all." Ladybug was still acting funny, but Chat let it drop.

She zipped along, hanging from her yoyo like a graceful trapeze artist. She leapt and swung with her usual control. Chat scampered after her with abandon, on all fours like a wildcat.

Being around Ladybug was always a visceral experience. Her presence made his senses hum, which served to heighten the experience of flying over rooftops and feeling the wind rushing in his hair and ears. She shone as usual, bathed in the glow of the moon. Her backdrop was the lights of Paris which flickered like stars around her.

He lived in the moment at these times. It was the gift she gave him. No thoughts of home or school or friends or Akuma, there were no woes or anger.

It was only her. It was always only her.

 **Additional notes:**

 **I am SO SORRY about the whole Romeo and Juliet thing. I know it's cliché and stuff, but my little brother is reading it for school and I am a Shakespeare nerd and it just kinda happened. I dunno why, Romeo and Juliet is actually my least favorite Shakespeare play. Blurgh. I HATE ROMEO AND JULIET! WHY DID I WRITE WITH IT?**

 **Fun fact: I played Romeo in Romeo and Juliet in middle school. Why? Because I mistakenly thought he would be less whiny than Juliet. I was WRONG! It just made my Juliet really uncomfortable with having to say romantic things to a girl (she was straight, unlike my weird pansexual tookus) , and it made me realize that I had some entrenched sexism issues to work out. It also made me realize that people can be weird about gay-ness... which was a new concept to me. I couldn't fathom why folks would be weirded out about a chick cross-dressing as a dude and portraying an iconic love story.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's note:**

 **Sorry that I didn't put this in earlier... I only realized that this should be a thing at chapter 7 or something. I dunno if it flows or not, we will see (I don't read this stuff I only write it).**

 **Also, the initial intent of this was to just point out that Adrien was Bi (which is my headcannon) I didn't mean for it to get this deep and personal. Woops.**

 **I own nothing.**

"I mean, all the things that YA novels say make the 'ideal man' are bogus! I don't need some unhealthy relationship with a creepy over-protective monster guy- I mean come on! This guy literally _watched her sleep_. How messed up is that?" Mari discontinued her wild gesticulations and went back to her work.

There was a long lazy silence. It was comfortable and calm. It was the kind of silence that only came with late nights, and easy familiarity.

"What _would_ be your ideal man?" Chat asked after awhile. He sat on the floor lazily rolling a ball of soft blue yarn.

"I… well, I dunno if I have actually thought about it. I mean, I have certainly thought about _who_ I like but not _what_ I like" she sat for a moment, pensive.

"I think that I like kindness, and intelligence the most in guys. I love it when I can have an intelligent in-depth conversation with someone, and not feel like I need to be on guard. " Chat looked at her and smirked.

"I'm sure you have had many really imaginative conversations with Prince Meringue, what with the stuttering and all." A black glove smacked him square in the face.

"Shut up! Adrien is intelligent, and I am _trying_ to talk to him without stuttering, thank you very much!" this just made him laugh. He tossed the glove back.

"What about you, huh?" She asked, belligerent.

"Uh, well…" He rubbed his neck, thinking.

"I'm pretty sure my ideal guy would be handsome, brave, and passionate." He rolled the yarn ball idly.

"But mostly, he would need to be himself. He would never be afraid to have his own flair." He looked at the surprised Marinette.

"Er… so you are into guys? But I thought you liked-" She awkwardly trailed off, embarrassed. She didn't like talking about his crush on Ladybug very much. Well, she had thought that he'd had a crush on her...

Chat laughed at the expression on Marinette's face.

"Yup, I like guys and girls. For me, the fact that someone is a guy or girl isn't a huge deal, it's kind of like hair color or body type. I mean, I may have a preference toward girls, like you have a preference toward blonde's-" Chat pointed at the wall where Adrien's image was displayed in all his blonde-ness.

"But I don't think that you would not like a guy just because he's ginger." He smiled kindly.

"It's the same way with gender. I like 'em all- I mean, I have my preferences, but that doesn't mean that I like or don't like someone just because of their gender."

Marinette thought about this. There were a few people in her class that were gay or lesbian, but she was unfamiliar with this.

"So… uh… what are you then?" Chat grinned mischievously, he knew that this was new to her. That didn't mean that he couldn't have a little fun with it.

"Well, I am Chat Noir: Superhero and Savior of Paris! Mostly I'm just a boy in a tight leather catsuit." a pained expression crossed Marinette's face, it was time to let her off the hook.

"To answer your real question: I am bisexual. I don't identify as pansexual because more people know what bi is, and less people think that it's a 'fad sexuality' than pan." He saw her open her mouth, he knew what was coming, and tried to cut her off.

"Before you ask, I am not attracted to pans. That is one pun that I have heard far too much." He smiled ruefully.

"Which is sad, because the first time I heard it I thought it was the funniest thing. I laughed for a solid ten minutes." he turned back to his yarn. He was trying to prevent tangling himself in the unraveling cloud, but it was just so soft. He almost felt compelled to sink his claws into it.

"So, have you always known you were bi, or…" Marinette trailed off, more comfortable now, but still afraid that she would commit another faux pas.

"Eh? Oh, yeah." he tried to untangle himself from the blue cottony mass. "Looking back, I had crushes on guys as well as girls since forever. Sometimes I would think that I simply wanted to be best friends with the guys- like crushes are really anything more than that anyway, back then." He shrugged, as if to say: 'kid stuff'.

"But then as I got older, I thought that 'gay' and 'straight' simply meant which gender you primarily prefer. I thought everyone had crushes on both genders." he chuckled, suddenly remembering.

"As I recall, It took a rather interesting late night truth or dare session for me to figure out that a lot of people really are just attracted to one gender… a concept which I can barely wrap my mind around half the time." The ball rolled away in his struggles, and Chat instinctively chased.

"I haven't come out to my fath- uh... family yet. I mean, it hasn't really come up, and it doesn't seem like that big of a deal anyway-agh!"

Marinette startled when she heard Chat fall to the ground with a thump. She looked over to find the boy almost completely covered in yarn.

"What a tangled web we weave." Chat said, trying to cover his embarrassment.

Marinette sighed and abandoned her work to help Chat.

"I"ve never heard anything about this, no interviews or tabloids mention anything about it. Why is that?" she began to look for the end in the yarn.

"Well, there are a couple of reasons…" he said, looking away "the first is I feel like the public already sexualizes bi-folks, and having a high profile guy who runs around in a tight black leather catsuit may not help the situation."

"Thats B.S., the same argument could apply for you labeling yourself as a hero. People sexualize that all the time, but I think that seeing the real people who save Paris helps to dispel that." Chat looked at her, surprised.

"I never thought of it that way…" He sat a moment, silent. Marinette coughed, feeling awkward again.

"Ahem- uh so, your other reason?" Marinette asked tentatively.

"The other reason was... that it felt irrelevant. People just assumed that I like girls- and they aren't wrong, I just neglected to give them the full picture." Marinette's eyes softened.

"It's not irrelevant if it is a part of who you are, Chat. I think that you should not be afraid to tell people that you are bi." She pulled his chin up so that he would look at her. His eyes flicked to hers.

"You are amazing. You go around fighting for Paris. You are funny and impulsive, kind, brave and _bisexual_. People know all but the last about you. That is their loss. I think that a lot of people like you may feel the same way as you do. You are in a unique position to show people that anyone can be bi. Even heroes. I think that it will help a lot of people… including you." Marinette smiled. Chat smiled tentatively.

She pulled at a string, and the cocoon of yarn fell away, leaving him free.

"Y'know, this is the same yarn I made Adrien's scarf out of" Marinette punched Chat in the arm playfully.

"Bad kitty! I was hoping to make him a matching hat!" She began to wind up the yarn, stopping to untangle knots as she came upon them.

"Oh? Where is this scarf? When were you planning to give it to him?" Chat asked eagerly. He loved her creations. He would love to possess one that he could wear as Adrien.

"I already gave it to him for his birthday." Marinette was busy untangling a particularly awful knot, and missed the expression of utter confusion on his face.

"O-oh? Really? T-that's uh… too bad- I wanted to see it. You gave it to him on his last birthday did you?" Chat was putting the picture together, he didn't like what he was seeing.

"Yeah, Adrien thought that it was from his dad, and he was so happy that his dad had given it to him that I didn't have the heart to tell him it was from me." Chat felt his stomach sink. His fears were confirmed. Anger, bitterness, and neglect rushed forward.

"Why didn't you have the heart to tell him?" His voice was carefully blank and polite. He had learned how to conceal his emotions long ago. He was very good at it when he wanted.

"I have amazing parents, they are my solid ground. It takes incredible strength and effort to stand tall on unstable foundations, and I admire him for it. He gets so little attention from his dad that any little bit means the world to him. In that small way, I could give him the support he needs by letting him feel love from his dad. It would be selfish to take that away from him just to claim the credit." she shrugged, embarrassed.

Chat felt wave of dark twisted emotion arise in his gut that had everything to do with the fact that his father had not only forgotten his birthday, _but had also stolen the present that Marinette had given Adrien._ But strangely, the fact that Marinette put his feelings first gave him comfort and warmth that soothed the storm brewing in his gut.

"Still, it would be a lie. If you were in his shoes, wouldn't you prefer to know the truth instead of being kept in the dark?"Marinette considered this.

" I-I don't know. I think that it would be nice to have something good in my life, if I were in his shoes. It's like learning the toothfairy isn't real. This could permanently tarnish his view of his father. It's a loss of innocence I would like to protect him from."Chat tamped down a flair of anger.

"Well, this guy isn't a child! He's been locked away long enough that he would be tired of being treated like a porcelain doll. Besides, you've told me how much he likes math and science, I think he values truth and reason. I know that you are trying to help, but I think that he would find value in knowing what really happened." Marinette's eyes rested on the floor.

"He needs _someone_ that cares about him. Until I can be there for him, I am _not_ going to open up a wound that doesn't need to be opened. I'm sure that his father _does_ care about him, and maybe there was just a mix-up." She fiddled with the yarn. She had given up trying to undo the knots in the yarn, and had begun to wind it back onto the ball.

"I know that he has been smothered, and I know that he is good and kind." She paused a moment, eyes sad.

"But I think he is on the cusp of something. I think that he is still discovering who he is. He is going to decide what kind of man he is going to be. I-I think that when he gets there, he needs to feel like there are people who care for him. He is good and he is kind, but it is hard- it is so, so hard to be good when you don't feel loved. I think that Adrien could easily become embittered, and angry, and cold- I just… can't watch him do that." Marinette's voice broke. She was trying to hold back tears.

"It's not fair. Nothing is fair for him. I just don't want to do anything that might push him in the wrong direction. There is so much in him that I can't bear to see lost. I am afraid for him. I have to protect him from that. I have to set aside my stupid feelings and become a solid foundation for him to stand on."

Chat was overwhelmed. He was dumbstruck. This girl saw him. Every part of him. He felt naked, laid bare. Was he really at a crossroads? Would he choose to become like his father? His heart froze at the thought.

"Well…" he said with a shaky smile, "If you really think that telling him about that silly scarf will ruin his life, then I guess a little white lie couldn't hurt right?" His smile turned ironic.

"Sorry," She giggled, hastily wiping at her tears. "I guess I'm overthinking it right?"

"Nah, it shows that you genuinely care about your friends. I think that's a good thing" he hugged her, and she went back to her work.


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's note:**

 **I am so excited about the season 2 spoilers that came out on the seventh! I also came up with an idea that would fit itself into this story fairly nicely, but the plot that I am thinking about would have a HUGE change in tone. So I'm thinking about ending this one, and making a sequel that will have plot instead of fluff. Honestly it should be a separate fanfiction but the set up in this story is so perfect for the background of the next story.**

 **Alright, scheming aside. I don't quite know yet if I want to make this a reveal fic yet. I'm leaning towards a reveal fic but I think I can pull things off without a reveal. The reveal is so... overdone in the fanfic community, but I think it would make a great ending for this one. Anyway, if someone feels strongly one way or the other, PM me or email or review. I will very likely do as the readership wishes *Suddenly a wild Princess Bride reference appears***

 **Thank you for reading, my friends!**

 **I own nothing**

"So I follow up on this anonymous tip, and to my surprise I find Ladybug _herself_ standing there waiting for me!" Alya squealed for possibly the hundredth time that morning. Marinette smiled, she liked making Alya happy.

"She told me that she has liked the LadyBlog for a long time, and she wants to give me the opportunity to document the ball-I think that she had seen the post where I had to tell my fans that I couldn't attend without a ticket, I mean, I can't get my mom fired- so she hands me a piece of paper and says that it is her _plus one ticket_! I mean, I get to be Ladybug's guest of _honor_ the whole of Paris is going to know that Ladybug _herself_ endorses me!"

Marinette took a sip of her coffee in an attempt to hide a smug grin. She knew that giving her that ticket would be the highlight of Alya's… everything. Besides, the fact that she ran the LadyBlog gave Ladybug a fantastic excuse to invite her friend along without rousing suspicion. There had been no one else had even been _considered_ for that ticket once she got it.

Well, Adrien had flashed into her mind, but only until she remembered his reasons for not wanting to go. They were good ones after all. She knew she should respect his decision. Besides, he already had a ticket, and Alya didn't. She had kinda felt bad that she had briefly thought of giving this ticket to someone other than her best friend.

"Woah, Dude! You are gonna get to go to the hero party thing? Totally Awesome! I am so jelly man!" Nino had apparently caught the last of Alya's enthusiastic monologue.

"Wait, you wanted to go to that?" Adrien turned around and looked at his best friend with interest.

"Yeah man, of course, I mean it's the most happening party in Paris dude, of course I wanna be there!" He stopped for a moment, and said "Well, actually I would want to DJ the party but that would only happen when pigs flew around France like majestic birds."

Adrien pushed his nose up to imitate a pig, and said "get me an airplane".

Marinette had been unfortunate enough to have been in the middle of a sip of coffee when she involuntarily snorted in laughter. When she could breathe again, she was grateful that she only choked on her coffee instead of spewing a mouthful of it out of her nose. That said, she began to half cough, half laugh in a way that only served to make the situation more hilarious, and the four kids laughed until Mme Bustier walked into the room.

*MLMLML*

"Tah-Da!" Marinette practically sang as she presented the gorgeous work of art to her partner.

"Woah, Princess! This is amazing! My Lady is going to look drop-dead gorgeous in this! Not that she wouldn't be lovely anyway." Marinette preened. She had worked hard on this project of hers and she was proud of it. It was hands-down the best piece that she had ever done.

"You know, _purr_ incess, it would be very nice to see you at the ball." Chat said, almost offhandedly "I mean, you could do some major networking while you are there, and the Lady and I would be sure to mention you and introduce you to some really well-connected people." His nonchalance was betrayed by his eyes staring fixedly at the dress, never once looking at Marinette.

She was stunned at the care with which he had delivered his offer. Chat clearly wanted her to go. He had already thought out arguments for why she should go, but he didn't want to betray his eagerness to see her there. Why?

Never mind that now, as much as she would like to accept the offer, she couldn't go. Ladybug had to be there, she was one of the guests of honor. She couldn't be two places at once. His arguments were good ones, and if it weren't for Ladybug she would have been champing at the bit for this opportunity.

"Oh Kitty, that's so sweet, but I'm already making two separate outfits for the Gala, and there wouldn't be any time to make anything for myself. Besides, I would be worn out from making said outfits, and will be in no shape to go anyway." Both excuses were technically true, if thin. She hoped that he would just leave it-

"Well, I'm sure that I can find something for you to wear. This cat has a few tricks up his sleeve! I can't do much for your energy level though, but I hope you will seriously consider my offer." he opened the pocket of his jacket and revealed a ticket to the Gala.

It was his plus-one ticket.

Mari had already given her plus-one ticket to Alya. She had sent a message through the Ladyblog as an anonymous tip to set up a meeting with her. She had come transformed as Ladybug. If Alya had been excited to see Ladybug, she had nearly passed out from the unadulterated elation of being given a ticket so that she could report on _The Gala_. Alya had been talking about nothing else.

Who was this boy? Why was he giving her-the clothes designer- his _plus-one-ticket?_ Did he not have anyone better to give it to? A friend or sibling that was obsessed with all things Ladybug and Chat Noir? They had only spent a handful of hours with her as Marinette, so why was he giving _her_ his precious plus-one ticket?

"And if you don't, you can always give it to that Nino fellow, I hear that he and your Ladyblog friend are pretty close" Marinette giggled. The other night Marinette had been ranting and raving about how perfect Alya and Nino were made for each other. After a while Chat had jumped on the DJWifi ship, and was actually contributing quite well to Marinette's former monologue.

"I'm sorry kitty, but I'm sure I don't want to go. Thank you for the offer kitty." She pecked him on the cheek. "I can give it to Nino for you though, if you like. I'll just say that you were prowling around Paris, and you caught me going home from the fabric store. It not foolproof, but at least its plausible"

"Uh-huh" Chat grunted distractedly. His face seemed strangely flushed. Huh. Maybe it was warm in here or something. She put the invite in her school bag.

*MLMLML*

"ARGH!" Marinette yelled as she fell down the stairs, her backpack spilling around her. Sabine frowned. Marinette had been acting really weird in the last few weeks, and unlike at the beginning of the school year, it wasn't explainable by a certain blonde young man. Something was going on. She started to help Marinette gather up her things.

"Marinette, where did you get this?" Marinette startled at her mother's harsh tone. She looked at her mother, and what was in her hand. The invitation.

"Uh, I was walking home from the fabric store when Chat Noir gave me this to give to Nino?" Marinette cringed at how bad she was at lying. You would think that with how many times she'd had to do it, that she would be better at it.

Sabine arched her eyebrow. This was Marinette's last chance to come clean. Marinette knew how it looked to her mother. Marinette had always been stealing things when she was little, never out of malice- it was usually with the best of intentions but her mother knew her too well.

"Okay okay, I was approached by Chat Noir a few weeks ago. Ladybug and Chat Noir wanted to commission me for the Gala, and to say thanks Chat wanted to give me his plus-one ticket. I said no, because I was going to be working overtime on both of the pieces. He said that he would give the ticket to Nino, and I offered to do it for him. "Marinette said this all in one breath, as if hoping that the damage would be less if she said it faster.

Sabine blinked. As implausible as it sounded, that would explain a lot of things. But…

"But if what you are saying is true, why didn't you tell us about it, I would think that if you really did get a commission for the guests of honor at a high-profile event, that you would be bouncing off the walls in excitement." Sabine felt like her daughter was telling the truth, but it was too… fantastical of a story for her to just swallow whole.

"Chat, Ladybug, and I decided that in order to focus on making the clothes, I shouldn't tell anyone about my work until the Gala. The paparazzi would be crazy. Everyone would want a sneak peek at what Ladybug and Chat will be wearing, they would also question the talents of a teenage girl instead of a 'real designer'. They decided that I should tell no one, not even you or Papa. I'm sorry Maman, but this is Ladybug and Chat Noir we are talking about. Secrecy is something of a necessary evil around them." Marinette hugged her mom apologetically. She hated lying, and she had had to do it a lot in the past school year. It felt good to at least let one secret go.

"Well, I'm still somewhat mad that you didn't tell us. But I can see why you did it, you were just trying to be responsible. That said, you know that you can tell your Papa and I anything, right?" Marinette looked into her mother's grey eyes and for a moment all of the secrets that Marinette was forced to keep nearly burst from her lips. She pushed down all of the secrets that were threatening to reveal themselves, and locked them away. She nodded, and hugged her Mom as she blinked away tears.

"Well, now that I know about it, you can tell your Papa and I all about your new designs!" Sabine said brightly.

Marinette smiled.

"After school Maman, I promise."

*MLMLML*

Nino was not one to get annoyed easily.

In general, he considered himself a kind of go-with-the-flow and laid-back kind of guy, but this was ridiculous. His sorta-kinda-maybe girlfriend was obsessing over the party- which was totally cool, props to her for scoring a spot in the party of the century- but he was reminded that he wasn't able to go to said party of the century at nearly every moment of the day. Marinette was acting kinda weird lately, she was sleeping more in class and even more strangely, she didn't seem to be crushing on Adri-bro 24/7 like before.

But these things were mostly cherries on the sundae. The big fat sundae that he was really annoyed about was that Adrien was acting hella weird.

First, Adrien was really day-dreamy. Not that he wasn't before, but it used to be that he was only dreaming during the most boring depths of school, like a normal person, but now he seemed to always be out of it. Nino was seeing his friends acting out of sorts for a while now, and it was taking a toll on his patience.

"Hey Nino!" Marinette walked up to Nino, smiling brightly. Oh crap. He was not equipped to deal with Marinette adorableness. While Nino's crush on Marinette had been pretty much bunk after being locked into a cage for hours, he was still not completely immune to Marinette's cuteness.

"Er… Hey Mari-dude! Wazzup?" Adrien looked at Nino sideways. Nino was too focused on keeping his words from tangling to notice.

"Chat Noir gave this to me to give to you as I was walking home from the fabric store yesterday. He said that he was really impressed with your performance on _The Challenge_ and thought that you should be given a ticket to the Gala, and here you are" She pulled a piece of paper out of her backpack.

Nino looked at it. No. No. This didn't make sense. This had to be a dream. He pinched himself. It hurt. He re-read the paper. It was Chat Noir's guest of honor ticket.

Nino was surprised to find that he had bear-hugged the girl and was spinning her around while telling her how totally awesome she was. When he realized what had happened he set her down and apologized, embarrassed.

*MLMLML*

Marinette laughed as she was spun around by an ecstatically happy Nino. Adrien felt a twinge of … something. What was it? He felt like _he_ wanted to be the one spinning her around and making her eyes fill with warmth and amusement like that.

"Nino, she's just the messenger, put her down." Alya was the voice of reason. Nino seemed to realize what had happened and set her down, looking at her as though she had just given him directions to Shangri-la. This rubbed Adrien the wrong way for some reason. He tried to shrug it off. He plastered a smile on his face, he had just given his best friend the best present ever after all. He was happy for him.

"Nino! This is great! Now you get to go to the biggest party in Paris! I heard that Jagged stone and Pink Martini made it all the way from America to perform. You are gonna have such a great time there! Congrats!" Nino grinned happily.

"Thanks man!" Nino hugged Adrien which shocked him for a moment. He hugged his best friend. He was so glad he had done this.

*MLMLML*

Mireille watched the little group. Tears streaked down her face. Why did they get to go and she didn't? Everyone was getting to go to the Gala but her. Adrien Agreste seemed to have exhausted his supply of tickets since dark-haired girl didn't seem to be going. Maybe if she asked someone else that was going… That Bourgeois girl, maybe she could spare a ticket. She seemed to only have that red-haired girl as a friend. It didn't hurt to try…


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's note:**

 ***SPOILER WARNING* from now on I will be using characters whose names and design have been revealed for Season 2. YE HAVE BEEN WARNED!**

 **I will try to add things as they come out but basically I know nothing and my imagination latched on to the pictures and ran with them. So... sorry if they are not accurate portrayals of the characters *speaking to future humans who actually know more than names and pictures*.**

 **Admittedly, I have not liked this fanfic up until about now. I have discovered that I am not fond of writing fluff. I don't have enough experience to draw on, and scientifically speaking, writing fluff makes me feel icky. But I am very excited to write the aforementioned plot *laughs evilly*. What? I'm not planning something epic and heartbreaking in the sequel fanfic... what are you talking about?**

 **Thank you to all the folks that review. Thank you NAVSO311, and Groundhog girl for giving feedback on the story so that I can make a better one.**

 **Thanks for reading!**

 **I own nothing.**

Hawkmoth was growing desperate. He _needed_ their Miraculous! How could they try to claim a moral high ground when it was their stubbornness that would get everyone killed? The more time they wasted on this childish game, the less they had to prepare for _Her_.

He shuddered.

He knew what was coming.

He would go to any lengths to prevent _Her._

He needed something that would finally end this.

 _Desperate times, desperate measures._

Hawkmoth turned to the other man in the room. The man had wanted revenge on The Bourgeois family. He had been wronged, like many others, but he alone had the cunning to seek out Hawkmoth. He wanted the power to give the Bourgeois family a taste of their own cruelty. He would get his wish. Hawkmoth would use this man's power lust to his own ends.

"Are you ready to serve me?" Hawkmoth said, his voice smooth as silk.

"Yes master, please!" The man quivered with anticipation of the power he would now hold.

Hawkmoth placed a hand on the other man's shoulder. Purple-black ink spread slowly over him, not quickly covering and using him like the others. For this one, the ink seeped into his skin. It slowly crawled into his veins. It spread like a disease from the point that hawkmoth had touched that shoulder.

His scream of agony was cut short when the inky plague filled his mouth and silenced him.

Days later, when the transformation was complete, a creature emerged from the ink. It had glowing white skin, with a stretched, spiral patterned pointed skull, and most disturbingly, glowing bug-eye plates where eyes should have been. He grinned wolfishly. He closed his eyes, and flexed his power. He could feel every mind within his sight.

He nudged a mind. A woman in a smart business suit appeared. The Master seemed displeased. The man tried to nudge The Master. A brick wall stood in his way. The Master's attention snapped back to the man.

"Apparently your power is to collect people's free will. Thus you are now The Collector, do you understand my child?" The Collector nodded. He understood where the mistake had been. He did not collect freewill, so much as shape them to his design. But then again, something as arbitrary as a name was superfluous anyway.

"You have emerged just in time. Your sister has just been born; she is making the loveliest distraction. Go." The Collector went.

*MLMLML*

"So basically these water molecules are all a bunch of followers and they go 'hey! I wanna go with that lid' and each layer of the water has less and less velocity until it reaches the bottom. So all of that water is dragging on the poor lid like a bunch of kill joys…" Adrien was explaining the concepts of the viscosity and Poiseuille flow, while being a hilarious dork about it. Marinette loved seeing him open up like this. His true self seemed only to show through when he was really excited about something and forgot that anyone was looking.

Turns out Adrien was one of the biggest dorks Marinette had ever met. She was glad that he felt comfortable enough with her to show himself, instead of what she suspected was the boy he pretended to be for his father. She strongly suspected that in another life, Adrien would have chosen to pursue science as a carrier, instead of modeling. Maybe a materials science engineer? Astrophysicist? She imagined him growing up and getting a job he actually wanted, without the restrictions of his father. He would be happy, which made her happy.

With a jolt, she realized that she had just daydreamed about Adrien unromantically. Score! She was finally getting better at what she had begun to call "the just a friend" game.

She was proud of herself. Before, she would have embarrassed herself by squealing at the revelation that Adrien Agreste was an adorable dork, but now…

Now she couldn't stop thinking about another dork that came to mind. Like Adrien, he had beautiful golden hair, green eyes, and a heart-melting smile. But that was where the similarities ended. Chat was so… wild and free. He was game for dancing around Marinette's room in her PJ's or for just talking. Recently she had been telling him about the things she was doing at school, her relationship with Alya, and other day-to-day worries and woes. He was becoming far more to her than her friend and partner, he was becoming a confidant, and someone whose company she needed.

She sometimes dreamt of hearing a knock on her trapdoor in the hours of tedium that school often afforded. She would find that she wanted his opinion on this or that, and wished that she could spend whole days with him instead of the stolen moments when her parents were working late.

What would happen when she finished the work that kept him in her company? How could she convince him to stay when she no longer had anything tied to Ladybug to keep him there, as far as he knew? The only way he would stay was if he knew that she was Ladybug.

 _Ladybug_.

There had been many times where she felt irrationally jealous and inadequate when compared to her alter-ego, but this wave of emotion was new for her.

No. She could not allow emotion to cloud her judgement. There were lives on the line. Revealing herself to Chat could be dangerous for her family. No matter how… attached she got, she would allow nothing to harm her family and friends. Not even herself.

She focused back in on what he was saying. He was talking about how calculus might be able to help find the area of the thing. Really? Calculus? That was at least two years in their future. How far ahead _was_ he in math? Freaking nerd. She smiled.

Adrien for his part had his mouth on autopilot. He could tell that Mari wasn't listening. Adrien was simply reveling in Mari's company. He found that he craved his time with her more and more. He loved watching her work, and cracking jokes at her which she cleverly returned in kind. He loved that she was so carefree and silly with Chat. She was unafraid to be _her_. She sang badly to Jagged stone songs, and danced around her room shredding on an air guitar. She would spin in her desk chair just for the pure pleasure of spinning, and she would elbow him playfully if he said something stupid.

A scream ripped through the school. The two teens tensed.

"THIS IS THE LAST STRAW! I WANT TO GO ON VACATION!" Chloe. She probably broke a nail... _again_.

Other people started shouting in alarm.

Nope. It wasn't just her, it was an Akuma. Both teens rolled their eyes as they realized that Chloe must have caused _another_ Akuma.

"There's an exit that way, use it. I'll go see if I can remind other students that this exit is available. Go! Now!" Marinette's eyes hardened, and a strength and fire suffused her being. No longer was she the silly laid-back girl that Adrien had come to know and love. He had only seen this side of her a handful of times, and they always reminded him a bit of Ladybug.

He ran toward the exit and hid in a secluded corner of the library. He transformed and continued his rush toward the exit. It wouldn't do for Mari to connect Adrien with Chat if she saw him exiting the library into the building.

*MLMLML*

Sleeping Needle cackled in triumph. She had the evil witch bound in an enormous ball gown. The little wench was still screeching. Sleeping Needle's hand crackled with energy. Poisonous green lightning hit the annoying twit. She was finally silenced as sleep overcame her.

 _"_ _Now your brother will come to you, and make sure that she does not have her happily ever after."_ Hawkmoth purred in Sleeping Needle's ear. Sleeping Needle grinned. She had already proven herself better than the silly child before her. She could let someone else punish her while she let the rest of Paris feel her wrath.

She gripped her needle-like wand. This was gonna be fun.

*MLMLML*

Ladybug passed many people singing while she ran.

 _Not another musical one_. She sighed. Whatever. Hopefully Chat wouldn't be made to sing again. He sucked at it.

A ghostly girl in a fluffy ball gown floated above the crowd. She crackled with green sparks engulfing her frame, making her look like a demon princess. She clutched a silver rod that glowed green with energy.

Before her, frogs hopped away, monstrous furry creatures loped to and fro, and people lay in heaps on the ground. She hoped that they were only sleeping.

Chat Noir was on the scene, already busily distracting the villainess clad in a clashing plum and lime green dress with what looked like an inky tar-like substance wrapping around her waist and sneaking delicate tendrils across her chest and arms. The dress appeared ripped, and tattered as if she had been attacked, but was of a vaguely Victorian style. Her mask was a cold blue, and her eyes glowed a pupil-less acid green. She was busily trying to zap Chat with what looked like a silver needle with blue tendrils snaking and curling around it.

"Hey, Princess! _Purr_ haps you can give _me_ a fairytale ending?" he quipped, as a bolt of green lightning erupted from the tip of the wand.

Princess? That was the name he reserved for Marinette! How many people did he call "Princess"?

"You will address me by my name: Sleeping Needle!" She shouted, as he dodged the gowns that launched themselves at him.

"Well, that was dis _dress_ ing! Got to do better than that _Purrincess_ " Ugh. Now? As adorable as it was when they were alone, cracking puns in the middle of a fight was just the wrong time and place. Besides, she was already miffed about him using

He danced his way around the courtyard. Marinette's heart nearly stopped when Chat was bound in what looked like a pair of pantalettes.

She had to do something. The wand seemed the most likely candidate. But she would have to get close in order to grab it.

"Lucky Charm!" Magic swirled in the air and extinguished itself in a small puff of creation. A butterfly net. A plan formed.

"Chat! The wand!" She swung down, with the intent of swiping the wand from Sleeping Needle's fingers. Instead, the girl spun with surprising grace. The poison green bolt of lightning struck Ladybug square in the chest. Surprise flickered across Ladybug's face before she crumpled to the ground.

"Aha! Now Ladybug's Miraculous is mine! "Chat, having used his Cataclysm, plucked the wand from the villainess' hand, and promptly snapped the needle-like tool. Dark magic leaked from the wand and villain revealing a small collapsible pointer, and Mireille, the weather girl.

He looked around and found Ladybug's butterfly net. He tried not to think about the state that his Lady was in as she lay crumpled on the ground. He caught the escaping black Akuma.

Chat Noir was shaking. Rage, shame, grief, and panic raced through him, clouding his mind. He tried to focus. He needed to see how bad it was. He turned her so that she faced the sky. Chat was crying now, but his world was going numb. He couldn't lose her. He couldn't bear to lose his partner, his friend, the only other person on the planet who he knew reflexively, and without effort.

He examined her. No singeing, no visible burns, no visibly broken bones, no blood. She seemed whole. The bigger question was, was she alive? He put his ear to her mouth. A fraction of a second passed in panicked tension before he finally felt a warm breath on his ear.

She was alive!

Relief flooded every fiber of Chat's being in a warm glow as he realized with pure joy that his Lady was not dead. Why hadn't she been revived then?

The Miraculous Cure.

Oh no. Oh no, no, no! What was he gonna do? He couldn't do the cure; that was Ladybug's thing! For all he knew, Ladybug could be asleep forever! It was almost worse than death, her sleeping her life away, never to talk to any of her friends or family, she would never see the sun again. He looked at her earrings. Three minutes. Ladybug would be livid if her identity was revealed.

Chat snorted at the thought. He would gladly endure her wrath, if he could just see her eyes open again. The image of his Lady chewing him out calmed him enough he could try to think. He paced the courtyard from end to end. Crumpled forms littered the ground, and frogs still hopped around making it hard to concentrate. He thought of the Akuma's power. Dresses, frogs, beasts, sleeping forms…

Dresses, frogs, beasts and sleeping-

Wait. Cinderella, Princess and the Frog, Beauty and the Beast, and Sleeping-

He rushed back to Ladybug, and without thought or hesitation, pressed his lips to hers.

Several seconds passed without movement. Chat's eyes were streaming with tears. If this didn't work, he didn't know what else to do. The longer the kiss lasted, the more desperate he became. Finally Ladybug stirred. Chat Noir nearly collapsed in relief.

"Chat… What-" Her question was lost as her earrings beeped in a final warning.

"No time. Akuma. Here!" He released the butterfly into the air, and more out of habit than anything else, Ladybug caught and cleansed it. She performed the Miraculous Cure just as the final warning came. They both retreated to secluded corners of the school to detransform.


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's note:**

 **GAH! Too much fluff! The next chapter is mostly fluff as well. This fic is getting longer than I thought it would be. Also, I'm not really sure where this fic falls anymore in terms of ratings so:** **  
* **BE WARNED THIS HAS SOME SUGGESTIVE MATERIAL.*****

 ** **It's not too terrible I swear, it's just teenagers trying (and failing) to keep their minds from being controlled by their hormones. Also, I think there may be a veiled dirty joke in it... I don't remember anymore.****

 ** **Sorry for the late posting, but this week has been... eventful. Not in a good way. Midterms anyone? WELL HERE THEY ARE ANYWAY!****

 ** **Happy Halloween!****

Adrien was in class. School didn't get canceled for Akuma attacks anymore. Today, Adrien wished it had. He had a lot to mull over.

Adrien was recovering from the emotional strain of thinking that his Lady was dead. It was lucky he thought to kiss her.

He had kissed her.

Months of daydreaming, yearning, and pining and he finally kissed Ladybug. So why was he so… blasé about it? By all rights he should be on cloud nine, thinking nonstop about the kiss, it was his first, and it was with the girl he had been dreaming about for months.

But all that came to mind when he thought of his kiss with Ladybug, was sheer terror and the overwhelming relief of knowing that he would not have to live without his friend.

His friend. He mulled that over. He compared his feelings for Ladybug with his feelings from a month prior. There was a clear difference between the two. Before, Adrien had spent every spare thought on Ladybug. Their time together, their fights, wondering who she could possibly be, and imagining a future with her and their three adorable children.

Now? He still wondered who she was, still remembered their fights… but it was different somehow. As if he was seeing his friend as... just that. A friend.

What changed? Unbidden, his mind flooded with images of Marinette. Her smile, her laugh, her jokes, even her clumsiness filled him with warmth and comfort. His feelings toward her were different than anything he had ever felt for Ladybug. His feelings for Ladybug had been full of admiration, amazement, and awe, as well as a feeling of inadequacy that he could never fully overcome. She was anonymous, mysterious, and brave, but Marinette?

His feelings for Marinette were that of warmth and comfort. It was more subdued than what he had felt for Ladybug, and yet strangely, it felt far more potent. She was someone he wanted to share himself with, every mess-up, every triumph, everything. He also wanted to know everything about her, what her favorite song was, what games she played with her mom, what cookies she baked with her dad, what made her get up in the morning.

It went beyond friendship, he realized with a start. It was strange, he had thought that he would love Ladybug forever; now he was discovering that, while that may still be true, his love was shifting from romantic to… almost brotherly. He felt guilty. How could he be so fickle? How could his love shift so easily from one girl to another?

Even so, he was beginning to realize that his infatuation with Ladybug may have been nothing more than a celebrity crush. He didn't know her that well. He knew how she fought, and how she thought, but beyond that they were strangers. Marinette had shared more about herself in the last month than Ladybug had in the last year. Besides, Ladybug didn't think of him that way anyway. Maybe it was time to let her go, and take a chance with another girl. Mari said she liked him, right?

A plan burst into in his mind, fully formed. It was as if his subconscious had been dwelling endlessly on it. He would ask Marinette out as Adrien. They would probably have to keep a low profile, as Marinette didn't need rabid Agreste-Fangirls making her life miserable. Other than that, Adrien figured that his father wouldn't complain; Marinette was nice, and Adrien had seen Gabriel's praise of Mari's work. Chloe would probably cause another akuma with her bitterness, but she would cause an akuma no matter what, so might as well do something he wanted to do.

Never had it crossed his mind that he should ask her out as Chat. There was no way she would fall for him twice. What were the odds?

*MLMLML*

Marinette had fallen for Chat.

Marinette had been trying not to dwell on this fact by working on the finishing touches of Chat's formal outfit.

She had avoided everyone today. Especially Adrien. Even though she was over him, she still found that she couldn't look him in the eye after what had happened.

 _Marinette had flown through the air, prepared to snatch the wand from Sleeping Needle's fingers when she saw the girl turn. In a green flash, Ladybug knew she had failed._

 _Marinette had felt something warm and soft on her lips. She smelled the comforting aroma of leather and spicy-sweet cologne. Her eyes opened, and she saw blonde eyelashes brushing against leather-clad cheeks. Tears dripped from his closed lids as he kissed her, gently but desperately._

 _She wanted to comfort him. She wanted to hold him, and tell him that it would be okay. She would fix whatever it was that was making him cry. She would protect him. She would protect him like he had always protected her._

 _Every time he had taken a blow for her rushed through her mind. All those times that he had saved her, he had shown his love for her. Why had she always rejected his advances? What had possibly made her ignore the bravery and kindness of her partner? Why had she only ever saved him out of friendship and duty rather than love?_

 _Fire burned through her, starting from the gentle press of his lips against hers. It burned away all thought, leaving only sensation in its place. She felt his ragged breath, his warmth, the tickle of his hair on her cheek, the feel of him cradling her head in his lap. She, who had set her life by logic and reason, was now learning the way of her heart._

 _She reached up to pull him closer, to run her fingers through his hair. She ached for more._

 _Chat had pulled away, relief and worry etched into his face. Ladybug saw to her dismay that while he was showing plenty of emotion, there wasn't any... desire in his eyes. He wasn't flustered, or embarrassed, in fact, he had been very business-like as he released the akuma for her to catch, and ran as she performed the Miraculous cure._

 _He didn't like Ladybug anymore. A lump grew in her throat. It stung at her eyes and gave her a headache that throbbed with each blink of her eyes. She detransformed in the girl's restroom. She walked to class and sat, immersed in her own thoughts, for the rest of the school day._

Chat Noir didn't feel anything for her anymore… but she had finally begun to feel something for him.

The irony was not lost on her. She began to laugh. She finally felt something for her kitty, right at the moment when she had lost his affections. A dam broke. Tears spilled from her eyes. She couldn't tell if she was laughing or sobbing.

There was a tight ache in her chest. It was a sense of loss and self-condemnation. If she hadn't been so blind, maybe she would wouldn't be sitting in her room heartbroken.

She sat on her chaise, knees tucked under her chin as if trying to protect her heart from further damage. She cried. She was so stupid. Apparently, she had a thing for boys who had zero interest in her. What a joke. What a cruel turn of fate.

What felt like an eternity later, her tears began to dry up, leaving Marinette feeling like she had been wrung out and hollow. Tikki, who had given Marinette her space, came out of the shadows now. Marinette needed a comforting hand. Tikki gave encouragements and reassurances that Marinette drank like water in a desert. Marinette had started to feel better, but her mind and limbs were heavy. Tikki suggested some rest.

It was late afternoon; too early to go to bed. She decided that she needed a nap. Or rather, she needed to curl up in some comfy clothes and cocoon herself in warm blankets. She set a timer so that if she managed to fall asleep, she would wake up with enough time to get her homework done before bed.

She burrowed under her covers, Tikki cooing soothing comforts into her ear. She closed her eyes.

*MLMLML*

She awoke. Confusion filtered through her foggy brain, the light was on the wrong side of the room. She looked at the clock. Late afternoon. Oh, she had taken a nap. The timer still had a half hour left on it, so what woke her up?

The knock sounded again. It came from the wrong direction. Her sleep-addled brain tried to process this. With a jolt, she realized that it was coming from the trap-door up to her balcony.

Chat was turning to leave when the trapdoor opened, and a disheveled Marinette appeared. Chat's breath caught. The loose, thin shirt accentuated her curves alluringly. The shirt drooped to one side, revealing a pale collarbone and shoulder. He cleared his throat, bringing his eyes up to hers.

"Early night, Princess?" Chat quipped. Marinette blushed, suddenly self-conscious.

"Well, I wasn't exactly expecting a knight in shining leather to come interrupting my beauty sleep." She mumbled. Her long dark lashes seemed to brush her cheeks as she looked away from him, her lips curled in an adorably angry pout.

"And what a beauty you are, Purrincess!" this made her blush more. Chat's brow creased in confusion. She was acting like she used to around Adrien.

"What a strange sense of beauty you have! I have bed head, and haven't wiped the sleep out of my eyes yet." She rubbed at her eyes. Chat nearly died of cuteness overload.

"Uh… y-yeah," Chat stammered, trying to regain his bearings "And you wear it so well!"

Chat could have kicked himself. You wear it so well? What the heck did that mean? Idiot!

"So, uh… let's see your clothes! Wait- that sounded wrong! I meant, uh… let's see my clothes! Wait- I meant-" Marinette giggled.

"Come here kitty, I'll show you the progress I have on yours and Ladybug's formal wear." She turned and led Chat a relieved down the latter.

"I haven't got all your accessories made yet, but I think I have most of Ladybug's. She said that she couldn't take off her earrings, so I made earring embellishments. They clip onto the earring and make it look different." she held up what looked like two pendants made of intricately looped golden wire with a small white yang symbols on them. He marveled at the craftsmanship. How did she make this?

She held up a necklace with a golden chain, on it was a pearlescent yang pendant. "I made the yin-yang stuff with some seashells I had lying around from the last time I went to the beach with my parents," she said, her tone casual. "I had to pick up some gold-plaited wire, fully gold wire would have been far too malleable. But the hair piece was the one that gave me trouble. At first I was thinking that I wanted to go with gold wire like the earrings, but then I couldn't get it to not get caught in hair. I tested it on myself, and I thought I was going to lose a good chunk of hair over it. So instead I went with red plastic embellished with gold leaf. I had a devil of a time cutting out a hole that was just the right size for that furshlugginer yang thing. I wound up having to buy a small sanding bit for my power drill." Chat looked at her sideways.

"What?" She asked.

"I didn't know you owned a power drill." Fashion designers didn't usually need power tools. Adrien tried to picture his father using one. He couldn't imagine it. Adrien had never touched one himself, his father felt that it was improper.

"Every girl needs a well-stocked tool set. My mom used to mooch off my tool kit, but she kept losing pieces of the set. Now I do all the repairs around the house because dad doesn't know a flat head from a philips, and mom kept losing my tools. How else do you think I make all my things myself? I made that chaise over there." she pointed to an overstuffed lounge chair, "I can't exactly do that with only a needle and thread."

Thoroughly awed, he decided to change the subject before he became a tongue-tied mess again. "So how is my outfit coming along?" he asked.

"Quite well, actually. I can't go much farther without a fitting though." She picked up a small black piece of cloth, and handed it to him. To his surprise, he found that it was a half- finished black silken mask.

"Why would I need this?" he asked. Marinette blew out a sigh of impatience.

"Well, you can't exactly go transformed, can you?" Chat looked at her, his expression clearly asking 'why the heck not?'

"Firstly, the clothes wouldn't fit very well on you, Ladybug has a fairly unadorned suit, but you have bells and whistles." She tapped the large bell on his neck.

"Besides, having you guys outside of your suit makes it so that I have more design options. I can actually have Ladybug showing some shoulder." Chat remembered that Ladybugs suit covered everything from the neck down. Point taken.

"And lastly, Ladybug told me that any clothes you wear tend to 'disappear- to be replaced by the suits', therefore from a tactical standpoint, if there is trouble in Paris you guys can just transform and have the cumbersome fancy stuff out of the way for fighting. No strip-down required." Chat Noir couldn't argue with that.

He grabbed the suit that she held out to him and asked, "Where should I change?" She turned beet red.

"Uh… well, I suppose that I could go up to the loft and you could erm… change underneath so I can't see you." Marinette walked stiffly up the stairs to her bed. Chat walked under the loft and waited until he heard a 'womf' that meant that she had flopped onto her bed. He let his transformation go with a green flash. Plagg drifted out of his ring

"Where's my- hey! This isn't your room! This looks like a girl's bedroom. What, did you finally get over your Lady-love?" The kwami asked suggestively. Adrien turned beet red.

"Shut up, it's not like that! Marinette needs to do a fitting for Chat Noir's clothes for the Gala." Adrien started to tie-on the mask before he started to undress, in case Marinette heard the conversation he was having and got curious. He was not unused to undressing with other people in the room. He was a model after all. What he was unused to was undressing in a girl's bedroom, not only that, but Marinette's bedroom.

"Alright, I think I'm done" Adrien started to gather up his clothes and quickly realized that his civilian clothes would be easily recognizable. His secret would be out if Marinette saw that Chat Noir wore the same outfit as Adrien on the same day that Adrien wore it. Adrien balled up his clothes and tossed them quickly under her desk. He smiled nervously as she descended the stairs

Ten minutes later Chat was standing in the middle of the room being poked and prodded by Marinette. Of course, he had experienced this kind of thing before, but it was different when it was done by someone he actually liked.

His discomfort was amplified when she started to pin the inseam of his slacks. He cast about for something, anything but the feeling of her hands trailing up the inside of his leg.

"Uh!" he started, louder than he'd meant to. She looked up, still kneeling in front of him. He forced his eyes to hers. He was doing his darnedest to be a gentleman. "Er… I notice you don't have any p-pictures of Prince Meringue. What happened?" he asked.

Great idea, genius! Ask her about her crush on you while she is… er… down there. You always know how to get out of trouble, don't you? Adrien thought to himself.

She shrugged. "I don't really feel that way about him anymore. I mean, I still have moments, but by-and-large I think that I am over him." Adrien's stomach flopped like he had missed a step walking up stairs.

"Oh. That's… good to hear." he tried to hide the sickening twisting in his gut. "So, does that mean that you have a new beau, Princess?" He tried to access Chat Noir, which felt awkward when he wasn't transformed.

"Maybe." she answered back. Chat's gut turned to ice. "I have recently discovered that I have taken a liking to a boy who had his eye on a certain polka-dotted heroine," she sighed. Anger bubbled through Chat.

"Who is this idiot? Why is he passing up someone as amazing as you for a stupid pipe dream?" this was the most civil response that passed through his head in that moment. A twinge of embarrassment passed though him; her love life was none of his business. Incongruously, she smiled.

"This boy is nothing like you, he is a bad boy who dresses in black leather, so you are right out monsieur goody-goody" she reached up and flicked his tie teasingly.

"WHAT? Who is this… t-this no good, half-baked poser?" his embarrassment was steam-rolled by his anger and jealousy. This jerk had the gall to woo his Princess? She deserved better! Chat's expression made her giggle.

"A boy with cat ears who runs around with Ladybug and saves Paris." She said, her tone almost patronizing. Huh? Wait, saves Paris? Marinette grinned at his obvious confusion.

She put her hand to her brow in an overly dramatic pose "And his puns are irresistible! I don't know how all the girls in Paris don't run away screaming" She feigned a love-sick sigh.

Oh… Oh! A light dawned.

Chat, who was catching on now said, "Yup, what an idiot! If I were him I would have asked you out by now!" his smirk matched Marinette's.

"Ah-ah! You forgot that he has the hots for Ladybug. I could never keep him from his precious Lady." her voice while light, seemed strained.

It seemed that she had guessed, but she still had doubts.

He knelt so that his eyes were at a level with hers. She avoided his gaze.

"Princess." he tilted her chin so that she would look into his eyes.

"I love Ladybug. I always will." She turned away. He placed a gentle hand on her cheek.

"She doesn't think of me that way. I don't think she ever will. Recently, I've realized that my love for her has changed from romantic, to that of a friend or sister. " She bit her lip, she pulled her eyes to his.

"And since I have started to spend time with a certain amazing designer" His eyes flicked around the room meaningfully, and back to hers.

"I have realized that there is an amazing, smart, creative, funny, and beautiful girl who would let me into her life." She blushed, her lips parted. Chat spoke again before she could start- he needed to say this.

"I would much rather spend my romantic energy on someone who will tell me her thoughts and dreams, " he smiled at the memory of a sleepy conversation in the wee hours of the morning.

"Or kick my butt at video games," he gestured to the computer where just two days ago she had thoroughly trounced him at every game he brought from his room. She laughed.

"Than someone who won't even tell me what her favorite color is," she smiled. He was surprised to find tears welling in her eyes.

He felt an overwhelming desire to kiss her, but didn't want to kiss a girl without her permission- magic revival kiss notwithstanding- so he pressed his lips to her forehead instead. He inhaled the scent of cinnamon, vanilla, and strawberry shampoo. It was so perfectly… Marinette.

When he pulled away, Marinette looked almost frustrated.

"Chat, I adore that you want to respect my boundaries. That said, from here on, if it feels right, go for it. I will tell you if I don't like something, if you will do the same. Agreed?" She asked. He nodded. He felt awkward. He had never done something like this before. Well, he had kissed Ladybug, but that was to save her, which didn't really count.

She gave an impatient sigh and pulled him in for a kiss. It was soft, sweet, and full of promise. Everything that a first kiss should be.

Chat Noir grinned like an idiot.

"Don't look so pleased with yourself, cat." Marinette scoffed, trying not to grin herself. His ego didn't need any fuel.

"Why ever not? I'm the cat that got the cream." he flashed a Cheshire grin at Marinette. "She was tasty too." he smacked his lips and waggled his eyebrows suggestively. She valiantly tried to groan, but was too busy laughing.

"How long have you been saving that one up for?" she asked, tears of mirth streaming from her eyes.

"Right around when I first saw your pretty face." He tried.

She rolled her eyes. "Not buying it. Stand up kitty, I gotta fix your jacket."

 **Author's Note:**

 **The other day I was brainstorming ideas for this fic and I came up with a couple horror scenes. In the spirit of Halloween, I would be willing to publish these as a separate story (rated T for blood and horror). It will likely have some spoilers for this fanfic in it, but I can probably adjust it so that it's not too spoiler-y. Lemme know through PM, Email, or reviews if I should publish these scenes.  
If I were to publish it, I would probably name it "Madame Blue" FYI.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Author's note:**

 **Warning: horny teenagers. Seriously, there is some suggestive teasing.**

 **Also, I have a headcannon that Adrien is Bi. I was told that I shouldn't just mention this in passing, and that I have to have a conversation about that, so I played musical chairs with the chapters… Oops. Sorry.**

 **The new stuff is now chapter 4, and the other chapters got moved down one. Tell me if there are any problems please?**

 **There is enough sugary-sweet fluff to give cavities. Enjoy.**

 **I own nothing.**

"Marinette, what has gotten into you? I mention that the blonde witch has made herself disappear, and you aren't cheering from the rooftops. You have been out of it more than usual today… wait... are those study sessions with _Adrien_ getting to you?" Alya waggled her eyebrows. Marinette had discovered that the best way to lie to Alya was to tell the truth in such a way so as to support one of Alya's false assumptions. Marinette didn't want her real distraction to be splashed across the Ladyblog so…

"Pshhh! What? No! Are you crazy? We are just study buddies, just pals sticking fast in the friend zone!" She giggled nervously, adding the cherry on top for her caricature of herself. She cringed inwardly at her own awkwardness, but knew that she had nailed her performance when Alya smirked, and started giving her advice on how to ask Adrien out.

She grinned and touched her lips with a fingertip. Little did Alya know that someone else had asked her out the night before.

Adrien sat in the front of the class mentally brainstorming date ideas. He needed something that wasn't too public (he didn't want the whole world to swarm Marinette just because she was Chat's girlfriend), he needed something that wasn't too private (he didn't want to look like a creep on the first date), and something that was relatively normal (he didn't want her to run screaming).

The least worst option that he could think of was a movie. Nobody looks around at the audience in a movie. He would have to wear his Chat suit to preserve his identity, but he would have to come up with a way to prevent people from recognizing him as Chat, or prevent them from thinking that he was a common thief.

He would have to work out the logistics. Ugh, this would be so much easier if he had some sort of communication that would work if he was transformed or not.

Burner phones maybe? Seemed like a good idea. In fact, it seemed like such a good idea that he might have to give one to The Lady as well. It would come in handy if one of them needed to talk to the other in civilian form. They couldn't exactly give out their real phone number, there were such things as reverse-phone books and caller-ID. Plus, he just liked the idea of a phone specifically for their hero. It made him feel like a secret agent.

Okay, so get a couple of burner phones. Then he could go into the theater as Adrien, transform in a bathroom or something and meet Marinette in the auditorium. Not very romantic, but still better than nothing.

Nino saw Adrien's love-struck look.

"Hey, sup dude?" No response. Okay…

"Yo, what's on your mind bro?" Not even a grunt of acknowledgement.

"Dude, your backpack is on fire!" Adrien jumped and checked his backpack. Adrien glared at his best friend, who smiled apologetically.

"You were really wrapped up in your thoughts bro. What's got your head in the clouds?" Adrien refused to look at Nino. A sure sign that he was about to lie.

"Nothing" Adrien turned pink.

"Whelp, that's a whole lotta nothing going on in there. Either it was something good, or you've got less brain cells in that blonde head of yours than I pegged you for." Adrien grinned sheepishly.

"Erm… well... I got a date coming up and-"  
"SCOOP! Ohmygosh, are you and Marinette _dating?_ " Alya gushed from her desk behind them.

"Wait, what? Whatever gave you that-" Adrian was cut off again by another girl.

"ALYA! Shut. Up." Marinette glared daggers at Alya before turning to Adrien.

"Sorry Adrien, Alya was just getting a little too excited, and started jumping to conclusions. Again." She said sweetly before shooting Alya with a look that would have made grown men quake in fear. "Right, Alya?"

"Yes, ma'am." Alya said quickly.

"Continue please." She made shooing motions at the two boys who stared at Marinette in alarm. At a look from Marinette they quickly faced forward, not wanting to face her wrath.

Nino leaned over and whispered sotto voce "Is it just me, or was that bizarrely hot?" Adrien was too shocked to be embarrassed, and answered honestly,

"It's not just you" he whispered, barely daring to move his lips.

Mme. Bustier was annoyed that morning. Never had she taught a class that was this distracted. Most of the boys, and even a few of the girls were distracted this morning. Well, at least they were quiet about it, she made a mental note to go back over most of this material on review day.

*MLMLML*

"Princess, you have amazed me again!" Chat checked himself out in the mirror. He turned around so that he could look at his butt.

"I'm _purr_ ing in delight, Princess!" He grinned.

"How is it that you manage to flirt with _yourself?_ I didn't think it was possible!" Marinette smacked his arm playfully and rolled her eyes. He went back to admiring her handiwork.

He was used to looking good, but Marinette had given him something more. He was used to looking like a prince, like a goody-two-shoes, but instead he managed to look like the epitome of a devilish rogue. If Adrien didn't know that the boy he was looking at was himself, his heart probably would have fluttered.

He was dressed in a black shirt, black jacket and black slacks. These only served to make the acid green of his vest, tie and handkerchief stand out sharply. Adrien had thought that this style would make him resemble his usual clean-cut princeling vibe, but he was wrong.

Marinette had made Chat leather gloves with shiny black yin charms sewed into the wrists, a small gold bell earring that clipped to his earlobe, and a black fedora that made him smile. Gold-threaded embellishments wound their way subtly around the entire design, lending it a slight toreador look.

When he had first put on the clothes he had felt suave and cool, but what really made Adrien look like a thief of hearts was the hair, makeup and Zorro-like embellished mask. Adrien had worn makeup before- a clean face looked terrible on camera- but he had never worn dark dramatic eye makeup or made his hair look like a roguish mess. Marinette had been teaching him how to do it so that it would complement the outfit; and compliment it did.

All the pieces seemed like they should look garish or tacky, but together they looked… amazing. It was engaging, and it seemed to move on its own- telling its own story. It was by far the most amazing piece of men's fashion that he had ever had the pleasure to witness, let alone wear. Adrien had never felt so sexy, so free, so... _Chat Noir_ in his life.

"Alright kitty, take off those clothes, I can see that the fit is fine." She said matter-of-factly.

Oh, this was an opportunity that he just couldn't pass up.

He turned to Marinette with his best teasing smolder, and found to his surprise that she had lit up red like a stoplight.

"Why Princess!" he slinked toward her.

"You can't just ask me to take off my clothes!" he stopped just far away enough that they weren't quite touching, but close enough that she could remedy the problem with a slight shift of weight.

"You have to ask _really_ _nicely._ " he brought his face close to hers. His lips were a hair's breadth from touching hers.

"But, I'm sure you will do better next time. No harm no foul." He said, stepping away from her quickly, an air of unconcerned nonchalance surrounding him. It was funny to watch her face as she registered what had just happened. Chat Noir smirked as he imagined her as an infatuated anime character, nosebleed and all.

His smirk did nothing to help Marinette's situation. She turned, trying to compose herself. She was annoyed at herself for allowing him to see her so flustered. She would never hear the end of it.

When she had turned back around, she had found that he had loosened his tie, unbuttoned the top buttons of his dress shirt, and had thrown his jacket over his shoulder. He looked like the cover of a trashy romance novel. She let out a squawk of surprise and turned back around. She was hyperventilating. That image would certainly make her dreams a lot more… interesting.

"Alright. You are done, get out of my room before I do something that I will regret." She didn't trust herself to turn around. He chuckled. Marinette shivered. She needed to get him out of here. Now.

She pushed him up to the loft where the trapdoor was, only allowing him to stop and hurriedly gather his civilian clothes.

"Oh, I didn't know you were so eager to show me your bed. Tisk tisk. We haven't even had our first date yet. I am not that kind of cat." He teased.

Chat thought it was impossible for her to get any redder. He was proved very wrong.

"Oh, yeah! Speaking of which, I have something for you!" He produced a slip of paper, and a small red and black phone. A child-like gleeful excitement washed over his face.

Marinette was recovering from whiplash. He had gone from sinfully sexy to adorkably sweet in nothing flat. Oh man, was she in trouble.

"The paper is my new phone number, because I figured that the logistics for our date would be easier if I had a phone that would work while I was transformed or not. I thought it was such a good idea that I figured that Ladybug should have one too!" Marinette blinked in surprise.

"That's... actually really smart. I wish I had thought of that." he flashed a boyish grin. He looked for all the world like a kid who had come up with something that he had thought particularly clever. Marinette's heart thumped. Oh crap.

"Alright Einstein, get out. I'll text you later. Bye!" She slammed the door behind him, and sighed in relief. How the heck was she going to act composed around him when he did stuff like... _that_?

She would have to keep her hands off him when she was Ladybug, wouldn't she? As much as she loved that he liked the real her, it was going to be rather cumbersome to have to pretend that he had no effect on her. Ugh.

She grinned and looked back at the trapdoor. A distractingly hot boyfriend? She replayed some images of Chat that she had collected tonight. Her grin turned wolfish.

What a fantastic problem to have.


	9. Chapter 9

**Authors Note:**

 **Okay, okay, so I have been gone a month. Well more than that, but who's counting?**

 **Sorry about that, but I have a life!**

 **…**

 **Okay, so I don't have a life, but I do have school. Okay, I did get a little hooked on a few shows that may have taken up time that would have been devoted to this, but they were good shows!**

 **Yeah, I need to manage my life better. But hey, I got a month off school! I might be able to shake off writer's block for long enough to bang out a few chapters!**

 **As apology, I bring you fluff, and 1,000 words more than my usual chapter size. Let me know how my quality sizes up, I did this one over a long period of time, and don't quite know if it all makes sense. Email, PM, or review to tell me how to do better in general, and enjoy!**

 **I own nothing.**

Adrien had transformed into Chat Noir and was sitting in the front row of auditorium 9. They were going to watch the new re-release of _The Lion King_. He loved that movie. Chat was fidgeting with nervous energy. What if Marinette thought he was a dork for choosing a kid movie? What if she had wanted to watch an action movie instead? Red Rising looked good.

When Marinette walked into the auditorium, Chat gaped. Marinette wore a loose green shirt tucked into a high-waisted mid length black skirt with paw-shaped lime green pockets. He saw that she wore cat printed tights with black heeled Doc Martens that had been stitched with dark grey to look like cat's paws.

"Hi!" he squeaked. He coughed, clearing his throat.

"Erm, Hi," he tried, his voice so low he had to sound like an idiot. He decided he needed to move on, or he would be saying 'hi' all day.

"So, uh… w-whats with the er-the outfit?" he asked.

"Oh, yeah. I had this in my closet, and I decided that if anyone saw you in your costume that my outfit would make it look like we were just a matching couple who were fans of Chat Noir." She smiled brightly.

"Besides, I am a _very_ big fan of Chat Noir!" She flashed him a wolfish grin and sat, popcorn in hand.

Chat was certain that the temperature had risen by several degrees in the last minute.

"W-well, I definitely know that I am a fan of your _claw-some_ outfit. Did you make it?" he asked, genuinely curious.

"Yeah, I made it in the first couple months after you and Ladybug showed up, when Ladybug clothes got really popular. I knew that you weren't getting a lot of love so I decided that I would make clothes to commemorate you. You are just as important as Ladybug." Really?

"But the thing is, that I felt kind of embarrassed to wear them, because I didn't want you to get the wrong idea. I was afraid that you would think that I was one of your heartsick fangirls. Now that I technically am one, I don't give two cents." Oh. That's why. Because of him.

"That's kind of…" stupid? No that would sound insulting. Ridiculous? Same problem.

"A waste." he decided. "Think of all the times you could have made guys fall over from the cuteness!" he stopped a moment, considering. "And probably all the girls too." Marinette smiled, her face taking on faux innocence.

"Why yes, all that blood rushing around must get people prone to fainting. I guess that I can only wear my creations around you. I mean, you go around saving Paris, someone as strong as you should be able to handle some silly clothes. I can't go around with my smelling salts all day. Saving Parisians is your job." She smirked at him, as if she had touched on a private joke.

He gulped. Seeing her in cat-themed clothing all the time would be very… taxing. He could see her making new creations just to mess with him, and then wearing them all the time. He would have to deal with it in school as well. How was he going to keep himself from being overfamiliar as Adrien? He couldn't ask her _not_ to wear it, it wasn't any of his damn business how she dressed. He also knew that the idea that guys couldn't control themselves was a load of crap, but holy hell.

"M-Marinette I-"

He looked at her, she grinned shamelessly at his discomfort. There were definitely worse things than an adorable girlfriend.

"Hey, kitty, kitty! Wazzup, beautiful?" Like that.

The couple turned in the direction of the voice, and saw to their surprise a rumpled-looking twenty-something with blonde hair that looked more greasy than greased standing just behind them. He had lost his signature XY that had once hung around his neck, but his purple jacket and headband remained, crumpled and dirty. Chat realized with a start that it was Jaxson Brewer, also known as XY, the guy who had been such an arrogant dunderhead that he had caused Jagged Stone to become Guitar Villain. Chat knew this too well, he had been the one to save his ungrateful butt. He looked awful. He smelled worse, like the inside of a bad dive.

"Hey, that isn't any way to talk to a fine young gentleman!" Marinette said. Chat snickered appreciatively as Justin looked confused, then offended.

"No man, I ain't _gay,_ " he said the word as if it were an insult. Chat stiffened. It was one thing to intentionally misinterpret someone's rude words, but this guy had just implied that there was something wrong with him, and many other kids in their class.

"I just wanted to look at your pretty face! Your friend there looks like he _is_ gay though, so you can sit with me if you like." He patted the seat beside him, a disgusting leer on his face.

His attention turned to Chat, mocking and cruel. His eyes went wide when he saw the catlike eyes that were clearly no costume. Chat's stomach flipped. What was he gonna do? Was he going to announce that Chat was here with Marinette? Would he harass them with paparazzi and news channels? XY stared at Chat, recognition written all over his face. Both boys were so preoccupied that they didn't see the storm brewing in Marinette's indignation until they were both taken by surprise.

"Firstly, you aren't really either of our type, Pop n' blow. I prefer guys who possess kindness and intelligence, while he prefers people with originality and style. You never had an ounce of either." Marinette's voice was so saccharine sweet that Chat almost expected sugar to crystallize in the frosty glare she gave. It was kinda scaring him. "Secondly, he is Bisexual, thank you for noticing, and he is my _boyfriend._ So, you can keep talking and make yourself look like _more_ of a jerk, or you can Get. Out. _Now_." Her voice had increasingly transformed into a snarl with each word she spat at the now terrified man.

He ran from the auditorium.

Marinette slumped. Chat stared.

"What?" Marinette asked, still angry.

"You are amazing." Chat Noir grabbed her hand and kissed it. Marinette's expression softened slightly.

"Also, what the heck does "Pop n' blow" mean?" Chat snickered at Marinette's slightly sheepish expression.

"He was a Popstar who blows hot air?" a Cheshire grin spread his face.

"I didn't know you could pun, _Purr_ incess! I'm _blown_ away right _meow_!" Marinette rolled her eyes. The lights began to dim.

"You need some new puns kitty." She murmured, as she sat back to watch the show.

*MLMLML*

Chat had his arm around Marinette who had put her head on his shoulder. They had inexplicably found themselves hugging each other when Mufasa had been thrust into the herd of wildebeests. They had not felt the need to bring the other's attention to the fact that they had conveniently not separated again.

Timon and Pumba had just discovered Simba alone in the desert when they heard screams from the lobby of the theater.

Chat and Marinette both turned toward the noise, preparing for battle.  
"Doesn't this guy know that the phrase is _Hakuna_ -Matata not _Akuma_ -Matata?" Marinette groaned. She needed to get away from this nerd, so that she could get away from his terrible puns as well as transform into Ladybug.

"You get to the emergency exit, Ladybug and I will take care of this." Chat ran out the door that led to the lobby. Marinette looked around the auditorium. There were around two-dozen people who were still in their seats, unsure what to do.

"Alright! Everyone over here to the emergency exit! Come on!" Shouted over the still singing movie. She made her way to the fire exit and opened the door, gently ushering people out. When the last person hurried out the door, she closed it and hid behind a chair.

"Tikki! Transform me!"

*MLMLML*

When Ladybug entered the lobby of the theater, she found Chat Noir dancing and twirling to the tune of the horrid techno-garbage blasting in her ears. He dodged another attack from seemingly angry electronics directed by a young man in a black letterman's jacket with purple circuit lines twisting around his costume. The circuits glowed and danced around him, suspended slightly above the fabric that they were tethered to. Strangely enough, Chat hadn't been caught by the Akuma's attacks yet.

"Hey, _Jaxson_ " Chat spat the name as an insult,

"Some of these folks are trying to watch movies. Silence your electronic devices. Didn't you see the notices?" He sighed dramatically.

"Kids these days! Whatcha gonna do?" he shook his head in in mock disappointment as he dodged a homicidal cash- register.

Well, the fight's still young.

Ladybug took a moment to size up the situation and try to come up with a strategy that would win the fight quickly, and with minimal damage.

Ladybug's thoughts were cut off as her heart jumped into her throat. She ran into the fray, knocking aside a pretzel machine that was attempting to pour scalding cheese onto Chat.

Chat saluted her.

"Nice to see ya, milady." he turned to face their foe.

"We gotta make the fight quick, I got a hot date, and I don't want to keep her waiting." Chat commented, with a goofy grin that indicated too well that he meant every word.

Wow. Yup. His adoration had completely shifted from her to… her. This could get confusing.

Ladybug was trying to wrest control of her heart, which felt like it was trying to extricate itself from her ribcage. Why did he have to stupidly put himself in danger like that?

She was glaring at Chat when an arcade game nearly shot her with its plastic gun. Chat tackled her to the ground.

"Milady, are you okay? You seem off." Chat's eyes were filled with concern. A wolf-whistle sounded, rude and harsh. Chat looked up, undisguised disgust dripping from his features.

"Oooh, kitty is getting all the _Ladies_! Got a room for that harem? And here I thought that bestiality was a crime! Does your _girlfriend_ know that she has competition with another animal-lover?" Ladybug and Chat were on their feet, avoiding the murderous electronics.

They were getting nowhere. Ladybug needed to do something. She threw her yo-yo in the air and shouted the incantation that would summon a powerful object from the void.

"LUCKY CHARM"

the villain scoffed, and went back to his disgusting monologue. She looked down at the object of immense power. Wire cutters. Cheap wire-cutters. Damn magic didn't even have the decency to provide her with good junk. She never ceased to be disappointed by the lack of flair or showmanship that her power displayed.

 _Whatever. If it works, it works._

"I didn't know that pussy-cats could be drownin' in 'em! Maybe I need to dress up as a dog to eat that-"

"ENOUGH" Chat screamed. The hero seemed to have murder on his mind.

"Oh-ho! Maybe monsieur puddy-tat is right!" The villain said in a high, mocking voice. "I think that we should stop trying to examine the general, and start looking at the specific!" he grinned.

He held up one finger as if to tell the fighting heroes to stop. He paused a moment and then pointed his finger to a mound of cables. Extension cords slithered and squirmed their way from the pile, their movements hypnotic. Their smooth movements belied their speed however, and before they could react, Ladybug and Chat Noir's hands and feet were tied tight. They both fell to the ground, their backs to each other.

"Who knew that such an innocent-looking girl would be into alley cats!" He made a point of looking Chat's tight-leather suit up and down. Ladybug realized that her wire cutters were still in her hand. She tried to cut her own bonds, but didn't have enough leverage. She inched over to Chat Noir who she passed the cutters. He worked on her bonds, which unfortunately left Ladybug's mind free to listen to the villain's words.

"I will be sure to remember Marinette's preferences when I take her for my own. That stupid suit of yours looks like something a Dom would wear. I will be sure to play that role in your stead. I'm sure you won't mind, she was your _cover_ anyway." He laughed, his eyes more menacing with foul promises on his lips.

Ladybug's vision narrowed, the edges of her perception drowned in a black haze. There was nothing in the world but her rage at this tiny little man. Never had she heard such a disrespectful, bigoted, misogynistic-

Suddenly he was in the air, suspended by his letterman's jacket. The villain stared into Ladybug's eyes, filled with hatred and loathing. His lizard-brain took over, and the quip he had prepared died in his throat. A small squeak of fear pushed its way through his lips as the heroine wound up for the punch.

"Ladybug! Stop!" She turned, confused. Chat was shouting at her in alarm and fear. She turned back to see the villain hanging helplessly in her hand, and cringing. She felt her other hand fall to her side and realized what she had been about to do. She set him back on his feet, fingers still clenched menacingly around the fabric of his jacket.

The villain let out a triumphant cry. A popcorn-maker vomited at the red-clad hero with enough force to send her sprawling. Then the villain was engulfed in black ooze.

Something fluttered just in front of her nose. A black butterfly. She looked down. The ripped lettermen's jacket was still in her hand.

She reacted on instinct. She caught the butterfly and purified it, feeling ashamed of herself. She had nearly hurt someone intentionally, not by necessity or protection, but out of rage.

Chat walked up to her, still rubbing his wrists. He saw her self-condemnation. He reached out a hand to her shoulder, and thought better of it. She was not in the mood for kindness, she would only be receptive to anger.

"Hey, knock it off!" She turned, shocked. Okay, so maybe he was wrong about the format of his words but he was committed now.

"Stop beating yourself up. Yeah, the Akuma was especially annoying today. Anyone would have likely _paid_ to punch him." Chat looked down at the purple mess that had started complaining on the ground. "So don't feel too bad about it"

"But I'm supposed to be the _hero_ Chat, I can't go around punching people because they are annoying creeps! I need to be the better person, or else I will be indistinguishable from the villains! You would never do that! You are too good for that!" Chat looked away.

"I _would_ have done it." He said, his voice small.

"What?" Ladybug looked at him, shocked.

"You know," he laughed, but there was no mirth in it. "I am actually very glad that it was you, instead of me who had the cords cut." He couldn't look her in the eye.

"I probably…" he seemed to run out of words, he closed his eyes, forcing himself to say it. "I probably would have done worse." He looked at his hands, seemingly transfixed by what they could have done.

"If it had been me, I might have used my cataclysm. Did you know I have nightmares about that?" he clenched his fist, as if he could dispel the images that plagued him.

"I always wonder if I might kill someone with this power. It has nearly happened before, out of sheer ignorance." Opened his eyes, and looked up, a haunted smile on his face. Ladybug was transfixed.

"Remember our first fight? I didn't know how my powers worked because I was so excited to get out and help people. I was saved from killing Ivan by my own stupidity." he laughed bitterly, his eyes lowered back to his shaking hands.

"I think I used up all of my luck that day. It was luck that made me Chat Noir, luck that I met you, and luck that I didn't kill anyone." he looked her straight in the eye.

"Thank you, Ladybug, for saving me and Jaxson today. You saved me from killing him. I saved you from harming him, and in the grand scheme of things, he probably deserved to get punched." he smiled, more genuinely this time.

"So don't sweat it okay?" her earrings beeped. He laughed, "and go hide before you turn back into Clark Kent." she ran out of the theater, transforming behind a dumpster.

"He's wrong," a squeaky voice said, "you need to learn to control your emotions. This is a recurring problem for you Marinette. Volpina, The Gamer, and The Magician of Misfortune, all were Akumatized because your emotions got in the way of your consideration. You are a good person Marinette, and while I agree that what you were about to do wasn't heinous, I also think it is an indicator of underlying problems that we need you to work though." Tikki's voice was soft and soothing, as if she were trying to temper the harshness of the truth she had to deliver. Marinette looked at Tikki, the same broken look as when she had taken off her earrings on the first day.

"Marinette, you are good and kind. You are doing a far better job than most others would be able to do. In fact, you and Chat are both doing better than I had hoped. But you have this responsibility, and you must always strive to be better. I know that it is hard, but you need to stick with this. Chat needs you, and Paris needs you. "

Chat found Marinette crying behind a dumpster. He sat down next to her and pulled her into his lap, cradling her like a mother would a child.

"Hey, hey, it's okay. You're okay. It's over. He's gone." he smoothed her hair gently as she cried.

"No! It's not okay, _you're_ not okay, _Ladybug_ is not okay!" she tried to curl into herself more.

"Ladybug is worried that she might not be good enough, and that she might be on the path to evil, and you are absolutely terrified of doing the same, except you have the added stress of basically having to deal with the implications of having more destructive power than a bomb. Now here _I_ am crying my butt off, and you come along and comfort _me?_ I should be making sure that _you_ are okay, I should be comforting _you._ You just give, and give, and give, don't you and you never ask for anything back and-" his lips were on hers.

The kiss was sweet, and soft, and sad. It lingered for a long time, a comfort. It didn't build in intensity, it just was. It was what they needed. They parted, their eyes still closed, their foreheads touching.

"You saw the fight, huh?" Chat asked quietly. Marinette just nodded.

"You know what we both need?" Chat asked, wiping his eyes.

"A shrink?" Marinette snarked.

"Better," he stood up, still holding Marinette, "we need ice cream."

*MLMLML*

"You know, this would seem cliché, if you hadn't just fought a crazy supervillain." Marinette held her Mint Chocolate-chip ice cream, watching all the pigeons fluttering around. They were on a rooftop overlooking Paris.

"Actually, I think that makes it _more_ cliché rather than less. No, the only thing that would make it more cliché would be a picnic basket and a sunset." Chat laughed, Cherry Garcia ice cream in his hand.

"Put it on the Eiffel tower, and we'll call it a date!" she laughed.

They spent the morning like that, watching the city. They talked. They talked about foods they liked, and movies they'd seen. They talked about the books they liked, and silly things they'd done. They talked about everything and nothing. It was the kind of conversation that happened when two people talk about everything other than what was actually on their mind. They enjoyed just being in the other's company.


	10. Chapter 10

**Author's Note:**

 **To all those who celebrate it, Happy Christmas. To those who celebrate it, Merry Hanukkah. To those with winter holidays that I am unfamiliar with, Joyous [Insert Holiday Here]. To secular people, cheerful New Year. To humans who have time off of work, pleasant peace. To those who do not fit in any of these categories, my condolences.**

 **Sorry for my fourth wall breaks, if they bother you too much, I can remove them. As always, PM, Email, or review to give me feedback on what I can do better.**

 **Thank you.**

 **I own nothing.**

"Alright, spill." Marinette was waltzing down the aisles of the department store, looking at the tubes and bottles of mysterious creams, lotions, powders, balms, and all around torture devices that were beauty products. Ayla was stalking behind her, in full-fledged detective mode.

"Something is up. You hate shopping, least of all for make-up, and yet you are trying to pick out the perfect stuff for a 'client'." She put air quotes around the word the word "client" as if she were skeptical that there were such a thing as clients, and that even if there were, her friend wouldn't be make-up shopping for one.

"Since when do you pick out make-up? Are you a makeup artist on top of a fashion designer now? Since when do you know anything about makeup? I know for a fact that you have only ever worn mascara. Are you trying to get dolled up for someone? If so, I say scrap that!" Alya said, hands on hips. Her ratta-tat questions made her an excellent reporter and blogger, but made it difficult to get a word in edgewise.

"First, I pick out make up since the _job calls for it_." Marinette looked Alya directly in the face, just so Alya knew that she was being serious. Then she turned back to the baffling assortment of potions and creams she was examining.

"The client asked me what would go best with the outfit, and I need to do some research." she said, fingering a swatch of deep crimson fabric.

"Second, a lot of designers have to design the makeup for their model, so I need to learn sometime right? And third, you know more about it than I do, thus you are here." She gestured around grandly, as if it were all an exciting adventure. Alya stared at her unamused, like a parent that has been dragged on 'an exciting adventure'.

"Besides, I can to make-up on other people decently well, but it never works on me." she mumbled to herself, looking down at expensive powdered pigments.

"Why? You only have to do it on them, right?" Alya asked. Her hearing was on point. Marinette made a mental note that if she ever switched sides, evil muttering was not in her best interest… she would be caught in a day. Honestly, she had no clue how nobody had noticed that something was off. Eh, a thought for when Alya wasn't staring expectantly.

"Yeah, but I want to be able to use me as a guinea pig. My client has similar skin tone as me, and I want to make sure that I don't waste the client's time" Alya didn't seem to be buying it.

"And _who,_ prithee, is this mysterious 'client' thou hast?" Alya said, using a deep dramatic, tone.

"The Client does not want me to discuss their identity nor their plans… _to anyone."_ Marinette said.

"Oh, come on, don't gimme that. If you wanna get dolled up, it's okay. Who you getting dolled up for?" a conspiratorial tone creeped into her voice.

"Nobody." Marinette said, innocently.

"Aww come on! You can tell me!" Alya coaxed.

"Nope." She said, popping the 'P', "Can't. Told you it's for The Client. And The Client doesn't want a lot of publicity. That's the deal."

"Fine I concede. For now." She rolled her eyes, clearly unconvinced. "But you gotta tell me why you are acting so weird." This took Marinette off guard.

"Wait, what? I'm acting weird? What do you mean?" Marinette was genuinely confused.

"You know, around Adrien" Alya hinted. Marinette rolled her eyes.

"I always act weird around Adrien." She gesticulated in typical Marinette flailing, "It's just me. I just always act stupidly around him. I wish I didn't, but I do."

"But you haven't been acting weird around him, which is weird. You have been communicating like an actual human being instead of like a toucan having a stroke." Alya argued.

"Wait, so it's weird that I'm not weird, and that's why I'm acting weird? I'm acting weird because I'm not acting weird." Marinette said, feigning confusion.

"Exactly." Alya said, triumphant.

"But if I am acting weird, then there is no problem right? Because I normally act weird" Marinette suggested. Channeling her inner Bugs Bunny.

"Yes." Alya said. Marinette waited. "Wait, no! That's not what- "Alya growled in frustration, and lightly smacked Marinette on the top of her head. Marinette snickered. She was a terrible friend. It was great.

*MLMLML*

Adrien was in a great mood. His date with Marinette had gone well, even if there were some Akuma's, and some deep-seated fears coming to light, since when had any first date gone off without some minor dilemmas? Nobody had died, everything else could be fixed.

He waited. She was only ten minutes late.

He would get to see his Princess again. He realized that his nickname for her, which he had so carelessly bestowed, fit her perfectly. Capable, competent, confident, caring, intelligent, driven, and utterly one-of-a-kind. She always gave off the impression that she would give you a hug if you needed it, but if you messed with her she would tear you a new one.

She was real though. She was a perfectionist, she was clumsy, she wore special socks on test days, she was anxious, she loved fashion design, she had low self-confidence, and she was a person. She was totally and completely Marinette. She would grow and change, but she would always be _her_.

He waited. Twenty minutes late.

Adrien sat at their usual library table with his books set out. He was looking forward to spending time with her as Adrien. Well, he looked forward to spending time with her in general. Plus, as an added bonus, he could collaborate with her on homework. During his study sessions with her, he had discovered some things about how he thought and operated.

He was an abstract thinker, while she was more visual. She was more intuitive while he required a longer time to think through a problem. They complimented each other extremely well. For any problem, she could write up a quick diagram of the problem and explain the basic idea, and he could explain how and why it worked from there.

This came as a surprise to him, Chat Noir was usually impulsive, and Ladybug was their tactician. He figured that it was because he took so long think and make plans, which could cost minutes or even hours. Thus in the heat of battle, he allowed ladybug to strategize in his stead, as she could come up with plans in a matter of seconds (which was, admittedly, a long time when you are being attacked by giant musical notes or angry inanimate objects).

At thirty minutes he finally packed up his stuff and walked over to the bakery. He found Mrs. Cheng behind the counter.

"Hello Adrien, what would you like? For you, everything's half off. "She said kindly. Adrien looked around, very tempted.

"Actually, I would like to talk to Marinette, is she home?" Adrien said, trying not to eye the croissant that was calling his name.

"Yes, she should be upstairs, in her room. Let yourself into the apartment, you know where her room is." She winked, and handed him the croissant. He tried to give her her euros, but she waved it aside.

"Guests eat free. We aren't going to charge you for our hospitality" Sabine gestured to the stairs, "Now go, I'm sure Marinette would love to see you. She talks about you a lot, y'know." Oh yeah, Marinette had had a crush on Adrien. He climbed the stairs.

He had heard her say those words before, when he had come over to practice for the Tournament. It suddenly hit him that she had liked him back then. How long had she liked him? He never really considered it. When had she switched between hating him and liking him?

He found himself at the base of the ladder that lead to Marinette's room. He hesitated, wondering if he should call out her name, or knock on the ladder itself. He finally decided to just go for it, and hope that his social skills weren't too painfully abysmal. He climbed up the ladder and knocked on the trapdoor itself.

He heard a high pitched voice, which was unintelligible through the wood of the door, he heard what seemed like a murmur of affirmation from a voice that sounded like Marinette's. He knocked again, louder. A hushed order, and footsteps followed. The door flung open.

"Maman, I just need to finish this last- ADRIEN!" Surprise hit her almost like a physical blow. She toppled backwards in a sprawl of arms and legs.

"Hi Mari, I was just at the library, and you weren't there and so I came here instead of texting you like a normal person a-and now I've scared you, like a jerk. I'll uh, come back when you don't have a-" his embarrassed and awkward rambling was cut off by Marinette smacking her forehead.

"Oh, shoot! The study session! I forgot-" She pulled out her phone, and checked it's battery. Evidently her phone was supposed to remind her, but it had run out of battery.

"Ugh, I am so sorry! Come up here, we can study in my room" Adrien, still attempting to control himself, stuttered out something between an affirmation and thanks as he climbed up into the room. He practically lived here as Chat Noir, but Adrien had hardly ever been up here, and had not been at all since Chat had started dating her.

The pink-drenched room was usually like a salve to his nerves, a warm comfort, but it felt strange being there as Adrien. It was like climbing into bed fully dressed, with shoes and everything. While it was comforting, there was something missing, present in its absence. The suit made all the difference.

Marinette acted differently toward Adrien than with Chat. With Adrien, she was kind, friendly, and always ready for a challenge. With Chat, she was like that and more, she was flirty, fiery, quirky and witty. She wasn't afraid to tease him, and was completely open, and trusted him completely. Seeing her as Adrien was still fun, but he only saw the side of her that she showed at school, it was toned down, it was restrained.

He watched her sit on the floor with her back against the long- edge of the chaise and begin to spread out her books. After a moment, she looked up- seemingly surprised that he hadn't moved. She motioned to the floor next to her.

"We studying or what?" Adrien started, and moved to sit next to her.

"Er- what subject should we do?" Adrien asked hesitatingly. He felt very out of context here. Adrien met with her in the library, Chat met with her in her room, now that Adrien had invaded Chat's territory he felt off balance.

"I'm thinking math, since we are taking our stats unit test this week." Yes. Statistics. How had he forgotten that the test was this week?

"Okay, so do we wanna go over the homework again, or do we want to look at the examples in the book?" Adrien started, reaching for his bag.

" Well, actually I always like making up my own questions, something about making the problem forces me to think about what kind of stuff we should see. " Adrien was taken aback. He had actually never heard about that study tactic before. His teachers and tutors had always provided him with questions, but he had never actually _created_ one.

"Wow. How did I not think of that? That is actually really clever, where did you come up with that?" He asked.

"Actually, in grade school, I was going through a word problem unit, and I hated the stupid questions they asked-"

"Like the ones where folks have _waaaay_ too many of whatever item they have?" Adrien laughed, recalling his confusion at why people would have tens of watermelons.

"Yeah! Like, word problems are the only place where someone can buy forty cantaloupes and nobody says 'that's enough Arty, we love you, and we are concerned for you. Your cantaloupe addiction is getting out of hand: you are cut off!'" Adrien couldn't breathe because he was laughing so hard.

"Anyway, so I kept hating the problems that I was given, so Maman told me to make them myself. She helped me to do it until I could do it well on my own. There were some really interesting ones in there. I seem to recall one about GI Joe and how many men were under his command. My teacher recommended that I talk to a counselor because he thought that I was planning to do harm to the other kids." Marinette laughed, Adrien suddenly sobered.

"What? Why?" Adrien asked, wondering why on earth a math teacher would think that _Marinette_ would hurt anybody. Upon his unexpected query, Marinette looked embarrassed, like she regretted bring it up.

"Well, up until I was around six I was a real girly-girl. I always wore skirts, hated pants, and loved all things pastel and fluffy." Adrien could totally imagine this, seeing as he was sitting in a room that would be less pink if Mt. Pepto-Bismol erupted inside it.

"Well, then I decided that I wanted to be a boy. I refused to wear dresses, I made my mom buy clothes from the boy's section, all that jazz. I particularly remember that my favorite shirt was a hideous brown and grey shirt. My parents were really supportive, and I remembered being really into GI-Joe, which is an American army guy doll thing-." she seemed to suddenly realize that she was rambling, and went back to the original topic.

"Anyway, this teacher was a real jerk who believed that girls should wear girl-clothes, and boys should wear boy-clothes, yadda yadda. So he had a real problem with me making up word problems that featured GI-Joe, so he threw a hissy-fit under the guise of 'public safety'. He recommended that I take up some sort of habit that would calm me down, and signed me up for a sewing class." Adrien's brow furrowed in anger. Sewing, really? Was he from the 1800's?

"Papa called in a favor with his high-school friend, Mrs. Chamack. She investigated the guy, and found that there was a definite pattern of behavior of misogyny, homophobia, and islamophobia that he had inflicted on his students. This aired on a small local newspaper that she was working at. It wasn't very well read, but it was enough to have him seek other employment. I think he became a teacher for some catholic school." Adrien stared at her, dumbstruck.

"How on earth did he get a job at your school? Don't they have some sort of screening for that?" Marinette looked uncomfortable.

"Well, we had some budget cuts, and he was the only applicant for the job. Besides, as mad as I was, I didn't want to get him fired, I just wanted him to see that it wasn't okay." Marinette hugged herself- clearly feeling guilty at the way things had turned out.

"No." Adrien said it with such conviction, that Marinette looked up from her reverie.

"Do not feel bad about this. First, he clearly wasn't fit to be in a role of authority over children, people who level hatred at children for being female or gay or being of a particular religion are not fit to teach. Secondly, you have no blame, it happened _to you_ , it wasn't your fault. From what I figure, your Papa and Mrs. Chamack did the right thing." As Adrien said this, he saw her sadness lessen-if only a hair. This guilt had been festering in her for years, as these things did. It wouldn't disappear with just a few words. She would have to internalize his words and forgive herself.

"Yeah, I know." She was silent for a moment, then laughed.

"In a way, I owe him a lot. If it weren't for his backwards views, I never would've taken the sewing class, and never would've discovered my passion for design. Funny how terrible people can sometimes help you in the weirdest ways. Almost like a hero..." Marinette mused. Adrien didn't have anything to say to that, after all hawkmoth had given him purpose at a time when he most needed it.

"Makes you ask yourself if what makes a hero. If you do something with good intentions that has a good outcome, but is done for a bad reason, are you a hero? What makes a good reason or a bad one? And how do you tell the difference before it's too late? Usually you know if your intentions are good or bad, but it's harder to tell if your reasons are valid. " both teenagers sat in silence, unsure of how to answer the questions Marinette had asked.

"At any rate," she said, clearly changing the subject, "we need to study for our test" she straightened up, pushing the sour thoughts from her mind.

"Okay, so what do we want to practice?" Adrien asked.

"We should definitely try our hand at Bayes theorem, seeing as it's nearly guaranteed to be on the test." Marinette said. She paused for a moment, then laughed.

"My mind is drawing a blank, can you think of any problems?" Marinette said, practically rolling her eyes at the silliness of the situation- talking up how great she was at making questions, and then drawing a blank when it came time to make one.

Adrien's mind searched around, his eyes idly scanning the room. They landed on Marinette's computer, her browser still open to the Ladyblog.

"Shipping!" Adrien said, a little too excitedly.

"Like cargo?" Marinette asked.

"No, like Ladybug and Chat Noir!" before he had started dating Marinette, he had read theories that amounted to little more than fanfiction. He had loved the fics where he and Ladybug had accidentally met in real life, and were colleagues at work, or classmates in school. He especially liked the ones where their civilian forms were dating while they kept the fact that they were both heroes a secret. He figured he liked these so much because it mirrored the fact that The Lady wouldn't reveal herself, nor reciprocate his feelings. And if he was honest, he liked the idea that Ladybug had liked him in some way or another. Even if only as his civilian self. He had read several fanfictions, all of which would have been highly embarrassing if Ladybug had known that he read them.

Marinette was clearly not following what Ladybug and Chat Noir could possibly have to do with statistics homework.

"What are the odds that Ladybug and Chat Noir have met in their secret identities?" Adrien clarified. Marinette smirked.

"Well, if you believe the shippers, or the Ladyblog, they would tell you that they know each other's secret identity, and therefore it would be a sure thing." Marinette didn't know where he was going with this, but she seemed highly amused that Adrien was a LadyNoir shipper.

"Like, if they didn't know each other's identity, what would be the odds that they would date each other as their secret identities?" Adrien asked, persistent.

"Since Chat clearly had a crush on Ladybug, it would be like something out of a crappy romance movie." she scoffed.

No, Adrien thought, what would really be the plot of a crappy romantic movie would be if Marinette was Ladybug. If that were true, then she had never given Chat a chance because she liked Adrien, then happened to switch her affections at the exact moment that Adrien had realized that he had a thing for Marinette. It would be exactly the kind of improbable hokum that a lazy writer would look at and think: 'how original'. It was so stupidly contrived. It would never happen in real life.

"I know that, I just thought it would be fun to calculate the odds." Adrien was starting to get embarrassed now.

"Right, let's see. There were about 2 million people in Paris, which means that the odds that Ladybug would have a crush on Chat's Civilian identity are about 2 million to one, and the odds that he would have a crush on Ladybug's civilian identity are also around 2 million to one," she said, while Adrien pecked at his calculator.

"So multiply them together, and the odds that Ladybug and Chat would accidentally have a crush on one another as civilians would be 4 trillion to one." Adrien said this, and marveled at his own stupidity from just weeks ago. He had once dreamed that he would somehow date ladybug without revealing their identities. Trillion to one were long odds. He got a better deal anyway.


End file.
